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Reviews
Inara, the Jungle Girl (2012)
"Enjoyable in some ways"
This film tells the story of a military girl named Inara, whose soldier father dies after a failed mission on a remote island called N'iah. The military is interested in the island because it has resources such as oil and metals. Inara hoping to learn more about her father, joins another mission to N'iah. The military plane crashes on the island and Inara is apparently the only survivor. Inara finds that the island is inhabited by a tribe of Amazon warriors. Inara is at first treated as an enemy, but eventually Inara and the Amazons learn that she has a special connection to the tribe. So Inara joins the tribe and helps them fight the military invaders.
Now I admit this movie doesn't have much depth and the acting in this film isn't brilliant. Inara's military uniform includes a crop top and the Amazons wear only leather bikinis so this movie has a lot of sex appeal.
But there are several things I like about this movie apart from all the girls in bikinis. Inara is a troubled young woman who is as strong as she is pretty. She also has difficulty fitting in as she is disliked by the other soldiers in the military. When Inara meets the Amazons, she ends up finding a lot more than just the truth about her father. She also finds herself and her true destiny. I liked the scene where Inara makes a speech to the Amazons. It reminds me a lot of the speech Jake Sully made to the Na'vi in the Avatar movie. So in a way this movie has a similar theme to Avatar. One of my favourite and one of the biggest scenes in this film is the battle between the Amazons and the soldiers. Although the Amazons are primitive and use only swords and shields to fight the soldiers, they are able to win the battle.
So this film is enjoyable in some ways and I recommend it.
The Blue Umbrella (2013)
A delightful and whimsical animated short
What I like about this animated short is the photorealistic animation and lighting. I like the way various objects in this film have faces with expressions. These objects include street signs, street lights, awnings, mailboxes, windows, drain pipes, rain gutters, etc. All these objects come to life during a rain storm. Umbrellas also have faces during this rainstorm including a blue umbrella and a red umbrella who meet and fall in love. There is no dialogue in this animated short only facial expressions. I think it is very artistic the way a story is told with just imagery and facial expressions This animated short also includes a pleasant musical score. So I find 'The Blue Umbrella' delightful.
Wir sind die Nacht (2010)
"Better than Let The Right One in"
A number of my friends have praised the Swiss film Let The Right One In and the American version Let Me In. But I prefer We Are The Night. Because I prefer a group of beautiful women vampires than a vampire girl who befriends a young boy who is bullying victim.
We Are The Night is about a trio of beautiful female vampires lead by Louise, who is over 280 years old. Her two companions are the quiet Charlotte and the cheerful Nora. These female vampires are just as beautiful as they are deadly. Louise runs a nightclub and one night Louise sees at the nightclub a troubled young woman named Lena, who does pickpocketing for a living. Louise believes Lena to be the love of her life that she is looking for. So Louise turns Lena into a vampire. Lena is initially shocked by this transformation but starts to enjoy her immortal life with the other three women. This life includes fast cars, shopping and all night parties. But this immortal life comes at a price. Lena maintains her conscience and when the murderous lust for blood becomes too much for Lena all hell breaks lose.
This film explores the consequences of immortality and also explores the idea of an all female society. In one scene in this movie Louise explains to Lena that only female vampires exist because the female vampires have killed all the male vampires because they were "too arrogant and too stupid." So the female vampires have vowed not to turn any men into vampires so "no man mortal or immortal tells us what to do."
So if you like a film with beautiful female vampires, than We Are The Night is the film for you.
Charlie's Angels (2011)
"I don't think the show is bad, in fact I like it. I also think the 'Angels in Chains' episode is a great homage to the original series"
I'm aware that the new Charlie's Angels TV series has received a lot of negative reviews and I've met several people who don't like it. But I like the new Charlie's Angels TV series, in fact I think it is action packed and suspenseful. I like the fact the Bosley is a young man instead of a middle-aged man like he was in the original TV series.
Rachel Taylor, Minka Kelly and Annie Ilonzeh are all very good an the Angels. I also like the fact that all three of these women have a criminal past and that they have been given a chance at redemption by working for Charlie as private detectives.
Each episode I've watched has been quite suspenseful and action packed. I especially liked the episode "Angels in Chains" which is based on an iconic episode of the same name from the first season of the original series.
For those of you who haven't watched the original Charlie's Angels TV series I'll explain. In the original series episode of "Angels in Chains" the Angels get themselves into a women's prison in the country to investigate the death of an inmate. There they discover that the nearby small town sheriff along with the prison warden are having young women arrested and imprisoned on trumped-up violations. The women are enslaved until they become prostitutes in exchange for early release.
In the new Charlie's Angels episode "Angels in Chains" the Angels go to Cuba to investigate the disappearance of a young female American tourist. So the Angels pose as pose as unsuspecting American tourists. Upon their arrival at the Cuban Hotel the Angels are framed of drug possession and thrown into a women's prison, where their key victim, Tess, is also incarcerated. The Angels learn that a corrupt American capitalist is working with the prison warden and is having young female American tourists imprisoned and then used as prostitutes as a part of his business deals. Bosley joins forces with his ex-girlfriend, CIA operative Samantha Masters, to free the Angels and the other wrongfully imprisoned women. So I think the "Angels in Chains" episode is a great homage to the original series episode.
So once again I like the new Charlie's Angels TV series and I will continue to watch every episode of it and recommend this show to people.
Terra Nova (2011)
"Action packed and suspenseful! I look forward to seeing more of this show!"
I've seen the two-hour pilot episode of this show and it is brilliant! There is also theme in this TV series that I haven't seen before. There have been numerous science fiction stories about Earth dying because of pollution, climate change etc and in these stories the option of saving the human race is by migrating to another planet. As far as I know there hasn't been a story before where the option of saving human race is by using time travel to go into the past. I find that intriguing.
Also the biggest problems for the human pilgrims who have set up the Terra Nova colony is fitting into the prehistoric environment. Because although it is a paradise there is also great danger: carnivorous dinosaurs. Another danger to the Terra Nova colonists is a group of rebellious colonists referred to as the "Sixers". I admit that fighting vicious dinosaurs does make this show similar to Jurrassic Park, but the Terra Nova colonists trying to create a new future for the human race by building and living in a colony in the prehistoric past more interesting.
Out of all the actors in this show the only cast member I am familiar with is Stephen Lang who is best known for playing the ruthless Colonel Quaritch in Avatar. In this show Stephen plays Cmdr Nathaniel Taylor the leader of the Terra Nova colony. Like Col. Quaritch, Nathaniel Taylor is also a military man so in that aspect the character is similar to Col. Quaritch. But while Col. Quaritch cared only about conquering and plundering, Nathaniel Taylor has a very different agenda, he cares about the future of human race and is determined to make the Terra Nova colony work. So for now Nathaniel Taylor seems to be good guy, but I will have to watch more of the show to be certain.
Warbirds (2008)
"Cheesy but enjoyable in minor ways"
I admit this movie isn't very good. The visual effects and the acting are poor. The only thing I really liked about this movie were the female pilots. I like the idea of a group of beautiful female pilots during the second world war. I liked the heroine of the film Maxine West, she is as pretty as she is tough and resourceful.
I also liked the fact that Brian Krause plays an Air Force Colonel. Because the role Brian is most famous for playing Leo in the Charmed TV series. For those of you who haven't watched Charmed, Leo is a whitelighter for the Haliwell sisters in Charmed. Whitelighters are guardian angels for good witches. And Leo was originally a medic for the U.S. army during the Second World War, he was suddenly killed in a battle and in heaven became a whitelighter. So in Warbirds Brian plays another WWII character but this time he plays a soldier.
The flying dinosaurs are scary but aren't very realistic.
While the female pilots do have some action in fighter aircraft. It wasn't as intense as I hoped. So I only recommend Warbirds if you like the idea of seeing tough and pretty women in action. But don't have any good expectations about this movie.
Under the Mountain (2009)
"A thrilling and scary movie"
I really liked this movie. It is thrilling, scary and has brilliant visual effects!
I really liked the theme of this movie. Teenage fraternal twins Theo and Rachel who seem like ordinary teenagers but they turn out to be very significant. Also Theo and Rachel have recently suffered a terrible tragedy the death of their mother, which causes a rift in the bound between the twins. So throughout the film the twins not only have to discover their true destiny, they also have to rediscover themselves.
Sam Neil is brilliant in his role as the mysterious and benevolent Mr Jones who becomes the twins mentor. Sam is brilliant in just about every role I've seen him in.
Now the main antagonists of the film the Wilberforces, they are scary in every way; slimy, grotesque and terrifyingly powerful. They are something out of your worst nightmare!
I liked the fact that this terrifying adventure takes place in the beautiful landscapes of New Zealand. It makes this movie look somewhat majestic in the scene of location.
So overall this is a great movie. I don't see many Australian or New Zealand films that are this good.
SpaceCamp (1986)
"Excellent family entertainment."
I love this film. It is a fun filled adventure about a group of teenagers who attend NASA Space Camp to learn how to be astronauts. These teenagers include Kathryn an ambitious girl (played by Lea Thompson who played Marty's mother in the Back to the Future films), Tish a blonde haired and semi-Valley Girl with a photographic memory (played by Kelly Preston who has been married to John Travolta since 1991), Kevin an arrogant teenager who gradually learns about responsibility, Rudy a bright African-American teenager and the intelligent 12 year old Max the youngest of the group. (who is played Joaquin Pheonix in his acting debut, back then he was credited as Leaf Phoenix). The teacher of this group is Andie Bergstrom (played by Kate Capshaw best known for playing Willie Scott in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and has been married to Stephen Spielberg since 1991).
These enthusiastic space students have a lot to learn at Space Camp. At one point they have trouble simply getting along with each other. But their biggest challenge is when they are accidentally blasted off into space on board the Space Shuttle Atlantis. If they are to return to Earth they must work together as a team and work like real astronauts. It becomes a matter of life and death as if they don't succeed they'll never return to Earth.
Although the film is fictional, Space Camp does include scenarios that real astronauts have to deal with when they are blasted off into space. So Space Camp is a great film to watch if you wish to learn about what you need to learn to become an astronaut.
Overall, Space Camp is a very enjoyable movie and I recommend it to anyone.
Thunderstone (1999)
"A great sci/fi show for children!"
I have recently watched the entire first season of this show on DVD and I loved it. This show stars Jeffrey Walker who during the 1990's was one of Australia's most prolific child actors. He played Bronson in the second series of Round The Twist. He also starred in Ocean Girl and The Wayne Manifesto. Jeffrey is now a TV director and has directed episodes of Neighbours, Home And Away, All Saints and H20: Just Add Water.
Thunderstone is a sci fi/adventure TV series that takes place in the year 2020 on a post- apocalyptic Earth, which has been hit by a comet (referred to as the Nemesis Comet). Jeffrey Walker plays Noah Daniels the protagonist who along with his family and other survivors live in an underground colony called North Col. No one can live on the planet's surface, because of the extreme cold and constant snowstorms. The comet's impact destroyed all animal life, so to keep the children's knowledge of biology up to date, they are taught about these extinct animals with the aid of a holodeck (like in Star Trek). The animals fascinate Noah and one night he secretly returns to the holodeck to explore the animal kingdom on his own. But he inadvertently creates a time travel device that transports him though time into a desert. At first he thinks he's in the past but he later finds out that he has been transported to the year 2085 and is in a place called Haven. He encounters and befriends a group of children (the Nomads) led by Arushka, who travel around and try to avoid capture by "the Protectors" lead by the evil Tao who wants to mine all the Thunderstone mineral to power the vehicles for his men and to use this wealth to gain power. Thunderstone is a powerful mineral that comes from the Nemesis Comet. Noah learns how to operate the time travel device and he uses it not only to travel back to his own time in 2020 but also to a time period before the comet hit Earth in 1999 and brings animals from this time period to Haven in the year 2085 so he can repopulate the world with animals. But at the same time he and "the Nomad's" have to try and avoid "the Protectors".
The world of Haven in some ways resembles the world of the Mad Max films. Because like the Mad Max films Haven is post-apocalyptic desert environment. In Haven both the children (the Nomads) and the adults (the Protectors) wear shabby clothing and "the Protectors" travel around in dilapidated road vehicles like in the Mad Max films. But unlike the Mad Max films, which are very violent, this show has very mild violence because Thunderstone is a children's show. This show ran for three seasons but for now only the first season of Thunderstone has been released on DVD. I certainly hope that the second and third seasons are released on DVD someday as I have read those seasons have more adventures for Noah and his friends.
I really like this show and I recommend it to anyone who likes sci/fi shows for a family audience.
Tomorrow, When the War Began (2010)
"If you loved the novel than you have to see this movie."
I have read the novel of Tomorrow When the War Began and although the movie is inevitably different it remains loyal to the spirit of the novel. This movie is based on the best-selling Australian novel of the same title and is the first of seven novels in the tomorrow series.
One thing I find intriguing about this novel series is that the foreign country who invaded Australia is never given a name and is refereed to simply as "the enemy". The enemy is described vaguely except in close confrontations. All seven novels are told in first person from the point of view of Ellie, the heroine and main protagonist of the novel series. The novels also focus more on Ellie and her friends than the actual war. The novels (and this movie) aren't about who has invaded Australia and why they are more about that these invaders are here, you have to deal with it, you have to run, hide, fight back and survive.
The movie had very strong performances by all the actors especially from Caitlin Stasey who plays Ellie (the heroine and main protagonist), Rachel Hurd-Wood who plays Corrie (Ellie's best friend) and Ashleigh Cummings who plays Robyn. This film is Ashleigh Cummings acting debut and she certainly had a strong performance, as her character Robyn I had the most sympathy for. She is a deeply religious character and has more difficulty adapting to this hellish situation than anyone else.
I found this movie very moving in a number of ways. Throughout the movie there are many arguments between the characters about what is ethically or rationally right, plus a lot of intense action and suspense. For example in a scene where Ellie, Corrie and Kevin are being pursued by enemy soldiers and Ellie turns a ride-on lawnmower into a bomb in order to save themselves from enemy troops. Ellie kills at least one enemy soldier. This haunts Ellie throughout the rest of the film. Another very intense scene is where Ellie, Robyn and Lee are fleeing in a garbage truck while being pursued by enemy troops who are shooting at them. Ellie is driving and Ellie orders Robyn to take the rifle and shoot the enemy troops. But Robyn refuses to kill anyone and Ellie retorts: "This is no time to be religious! Shoot them!" It is a very intense chase, in which several enemy road vehicles pursuing the teenagers crash and explode. One scene in this film I also found very moving is when enemy troops are advancing on the teenagers and Robyn does something she swore she wouldn't do: she fires her gun killing several enemy troops to save her friends and Robyn is absolutely devastated. In the cinema I was in several people in the audience applauded during this scene. And the most moving scene is where Kevin has to take his wounded girlfriend Corrie to an occupied hospital because she has been shot in the back and will die without medical treatment. But doing so means they will be apprehended by enemy troops. So Ellie says an emotional goodbye to her best friend and she is left utterly devastated. When the movie finished several audience members applauded. They had probably read the novel and were clearly very impressed with the movie as am I.
The New Adventures of Ocean Girl (2000)
"If you liked the Ocean Girl live action series than this animated series is worth looking at"
I am a huge fan of the Ocean Girl live-action series. But this animated series is quite different. Although this animated series is called "The New Adventures of Ocean Girl" it has no connection to the live-action series. While the live-action series was a sci fi/ adventure series that took place mostly on Earth. This animated series is a fantasy series that takes place on Neri's home planet "Oceana". In the live-action series Neri's home planet was called "the Ocean Planet". This animated series has a beautiful opening sequence with beautiful imagery, a beautiful theme song and music. This animated series also has a number of interesting fantasy creatures that I would only expect to see in a animated fantasy series. I have watched the first few episodes of this animated series and I think it is quite good and has great fantasy imagery.
This animated show takes place on the ocean covered planet of Oceana. The plot is that Oceana's four life-giving crystals has been stolen by an evil Space Wizard, named Galiel, thus disrupting Oceana's balance of nature. Princes Neri goes on a quest to find the crystals to restore harmony to the planet.One of Neri's companions is a dog and seal hybrid named Micro. He's a rather cute looking character and perfect for an underwater world. In fact this show has a variety of intriguing looking creatures.
This animated series has one season with 26 episodes. This animated series is very different from the live- action series. But I still think this animated series is worth watching if you liked the live-action series.
The Secret World of Alex Mack (1994)
"A wonderful show! I loved this show as a kid. I wish the whole series were available on DVD"
I watched this show as a kid and I really enjoyed it.
This show takes place in the fictional town of Paradise Valley. Alex Mack who is 13 when the series starts, walks home from her first day of high school and her life is changed forever when she is nearly hit by a truck from the Paradise Valley Chemical Plant. The truck crashes and the mysterious top-secret chemical spills out of the truck drenching Alex. Alex runs home and discovers that the mysterious chemical has given her special powers including telekinetic powers, she can shoot electricity from her hands and she can morph into a puddle of silver liquid and travel anywhere she wants. She also has another ability that is very inconvenient for her, she glows golden yellow when she gets nervous. She reveals her powers to only two people, her best friend Ray (who thinks her powers are pretty cool) and her older sister Annie who is a scientific genius. Annie does tests on Alex to understand how her powers work and considers Alex to be her secret science project. Alex endeavours to keep her powers a secret from everyone else she knows including her parents. Also Danielle Atron the corrupt CEO of the Chemical Plant knows that a child in Paradise Valley was drenched in the top-secret chemical and has these powers. She is determined to find the child. So Alex struggles with the pressures of teenage life while secretly using her powers for her own personal gain or to help other people. She also tries to avoid and outwit employees from the Chemical Plant who Danielle Atron hires to identify the kid who was drenched in the chemical. Danielle was a great antagonist for the show. I also liked two of Alex's friends. The African-American and strong willed Nicole and the nervous and talkative orange haired Robyn. I felt that Robyn provided a bit of comedy relief here and there.
So this show was a very cool idea. Besides who wouldn't want to have those great powers (except for glowing when you get nervous). The only thing that disappoints me is that this show isn't available on DVD. I've heard that only the first season of this show was released on DVD in the U.S. But this show isn't available on DVD in Australia. So I still love this show, I will never forget it and I recommend it to anyone. I certainly hope that one day this show is available on DVD in Australia.
Cybergirl (2001)
"A cool Australian sci fi show"
I recently watched this cool a sci-fi/ adventure series on DVD and I loved it. Cybergirl is a blue haired and blue suit wearing female cyborg from another planet. She is the "Cyber Replicant Human Prototype 6000", the only one of her model to be built. Not only are her powers above that of the earlier cyborgs, she has a much wider emotional capacity than her predecessors. Her emotional capacity was considered a flaw and she was going to be decommissioned. So she fled her home planet to explore the race she was modeled on, humans.
Cybergirl is pursued by two Cyber Replicant bounty hunters who are 3000 models named Xanda and Isaac and their mission is to destroy her. Cybergirl lands on Earth near the fictional city of River City, which was modeled on and filmed in Brisbane. Cybergirl's powers include super-human strength and super-human speed. She also has a power called "technopathy" (although this term wasn't mentioned in the show) the ability to interface directly with electronic devices and computers and control them with her mind. She is also able to shape-shift i.e. physically change her appearance from that of the blue-haired, blue suit wearing Cybergirl into the less conspicuous, blonde-haired Ashley, and can alter her clothing at will.
Just outside of River City, Cybergirl meets teenage Jackson Campbell and his father Hugh, who take her in. She adopts the name Cybergirl as her superheroine identity. Jackson calls her "Cy". She later uses her shapshifting powers to change herself into the blonde haired Ashley, in which she poses as Jackson's cousin and Hugh's niece. The only other person besides Hugh and Jackson to know her secret is Kat, Jackson's friend and neighbour.
Cybergirl becomes the superhero of River City. She is pursued not only by Xanda and Isaac but also by a powerful and corrupt software entrepreneur named Rhyss. She is well loved by the populace of River City and is approved by Mayor Buxton, whose twin daughters Emerald and Sapphire are big fans of the superheroine.
If you like seeing action and humor in show for family audiences then I certainly recommend this show.
Ocean Girl (1994)
'A great Australian TV show! One of Australia's best! Read this if you wish to know about the show's fourth season"
I recently watched all four seasons of Ocean Girl on DVD and I loved it! This is a beautiful show which was filmed in two of Australia's great natural wonders the Daintree Rainforrest and the Great Barrier Reef. The heroine of the show Neri is a wonderful character. She's so peaceful, innocent and beautiful.
Neri is a mysterious teenage girl who lives alone on an uninhabited tropical island off the coast of northern Queensland. Neri has lived alone on this island for as long as she can remember. Neri is no ordinary girl as she has incredible abilities. She can breathe underwater and can swim great depths and long distances underwater. She can also communicate telepathically with a humpback whale she calls "Charley". Off the coast of Port Douglas is an underwater research and environmental protection facility called ORCA (Ocean Research Centre of Australia). In the pilot episode of Ocean Girl a marine scientist and cetologist (i.e. whale scientist) named Dr. Diane Bates comes to ORCA along with her sons, teenage Jason and his younger brother Brett. The Bates brothers encounter Neri and befriend her and agree to keep Neri a secret. At the same time the Bates brother's mother Dr. Bates and is studying Neri's whale "Charley" and she eventually learns about Neri. Dr. Bates is able to gain Neri's trust and becomes a surrogate mother to her. She also attempts to keep Neri a secret while secretly doing experiments on Neri to try and understand her extraordinary physiology. At the same time a rival research organization called UBRI headed by the corrupt Dr. Hellegren is introduced. This organization performs a number of secret and unethical experiments many of which cause damage to the environment. In the last few episodes of the first season, a spy from UBRI steals a copy of recorded whale song and UBRI uses it to trap Charley. In the last episode of the first season the Bates Brothers reveal Neri to the other children living on ORCA, then the Bates brothers, the other ORCA children and Neri work together and successfully free Charley.
Neri doesn't learn her origins until the second season when Neri with the help of the Bates brothers discover a spacecraft buried under the sand on Neri's island. In the spacecraft they find a holographic recording made by Neri's father explaining that he and Neri are "Ocean People" who come from the "OceanPlanet". Neri's father was a scientist who came to study and protect the Earth's oceans, but the spacecraft crash-landed on Earth. Neri's father also explained that there was another member of Neri's family on the spacecraft Neri's younger sister Mera who was a baby at the time and was placed in a capsule which landed somewhere off the coast of Northern Queensland. The Bates brothers and the other children are eventually able to locate Mera who is living in a foster home. UBRI also learns about Mera and her abilities but the ORCA children persuade Mera to flee with them before UBRI can take her. Mera is reunited with Neri and two sisters live together on Neri's island. But UBRI finds out about the two girls and endeavours to capture them. The Bates brothers and the other ORCA children are able to thwart UBRI's attempts. Then two Ocean People come to Earth to take the two girls home. Mera happily returns to her home planet but Neri decides to stay on Earth to finish her father's work.
In the third season of the show Neri and the Bates brothers search further into the buried spacecraft and discover logs revealing that Neri's father had with him this powerful device called the "Syncronium", which has the power to revitalize the worlds oceans and thus save the Earth from destruction. When the spacecraft crashed all the pieces of the "Syncronium" landed in different areas on the ocean and land. The Bates brothers, along with several children living on ORCA help Neri locate the pieces of the "Syncronium". Unfortunately Dr. Hellegren of UBRI also learns about the "Syncronium and wants it for his own selfish reasons. So the ORCA children have to try and stay ahead of UBRI.
For some reason the fourth season of the show wasn't shown in the U.S. I've no idea why as the fourth season is really enjoyable. Neri and the Bates brothers discover an underwater Pyramid located in the South Pacific built by the Ocean People thousands of years ago. In this Pyramid is a hologram of Neri's mother Queen Shalamorn of the "Ocean Planet" who informs Neri that her destiny is to become princess of her people. The Ocean Planet and the Ocean People are finally revealed in this season. There is great chaos on the Ocean Planet as a deadly plague known as the "Red Virus" has contaminated the planet. A group of rebel Ocean People led by Malakat (a deranged tyrant) and Shersheba (a depraved member of the Ocean People royal family trying to steal Neri's heritage) lead a coup and make plans to invade and conquer Earth, something the majority of the Ocean People are highly opposed to. The other antagonist in the fourth season is PRAXIS (Preventative Response And eXtraterritorial Intelligence Service) an intelligence agency which investigates extraterrestrial activity. PRAXIS learns about Neri and believes that her people are a problem for Earth. The two PRAXIS field agents are Jake Shelby (a callous and arrogant American agent) and his partner Ellie Hauser (a blonde haired Australian woman) who unlike Shelby follows her conscience. So the Bates brothers have to protect Neri from the both PRAXIS and the rebel Ocean People, save the Earth and help Neri achieve her destiny as princess of her people.
So Ocean Girl is a wonderful show. It is also one of the few Australian shows to perform so well internationally. So I highly recommend this show to anyone.
The Wind in the Willows (2006)
"Very enjoyable to anyone who loves this classic story!"
Wind in the willows in one of my all time favorite stories. I loved this story when I was a child, and this movie reminded me of how much I loved this story.
This movie appeared on Australian television just before Christmas Eve. This movie has a great cast including Matt Lucas as Toad, Mark Gatiss as Ratty, Lee Ingleby as Mole, and Bob Hoskins as Badger.
But this isn't the first live-action of Wind in the Willows. You may recall that there was a previous live-action film version of The Wind In The Willows that was released in cinemas. This film was released back in 1997 and it starred Steve Coogan as Mole, Eric Idle as Ratty, Terry Jones as Toad, Nicol Williamson as Badger, and Anthony Sher as the Chief Weasel. But this previous live-action film was a parody of Wind in the Willows. While this TV movie is very loyal to Kenneth Graham's original story. It has many of the same scenes and the same quotes that were in the book and it even has Toad's conceited songs. So I certainly enjoyed this movie and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves the book.
Ghost Rider (2007)
"Ghost Rider, the ultimate supernatural antihero!"
I loved this movie! It was totally thrilling! I haven't read any of the Ghost Rider comics but maybe I will when I have a chance to. This movie has many brilliant visual effects! Including the way the Ghost Rider looks with his flaming skull and skeletal hands and when the Ghost Rider rides his flaming motorcycle at breakneck speeds leaving a trail of fire and destruction. I also liked the Ghost Rider's signature weapon, a flaming chain! It was also brilliant the way the Ghost Rider rides his flaming motorcycle across the surface of a river and up tall skyscrapers! Nicolas Cage was brilliant in his performance as Johnny Blaze, the motorcycle stunt rider who changes into the Ghost Rider. There were also two veteran actors in this film, Peter Fonda who plays Mephistopheles, and Sam Elliot who plays this mysterious "Caretaker". Ghost Rider's archenemy is a demon lord and the son of Satin named Blackheart played by Wesley Bentley. Another of the main cast members is Eva Mendes who plays Johnny's love interest Roxanne, and she is certainly a very beautiful actress. As I already said this movie has brilliant visual effects, but I'll admit some of the visual effects are gruesome, especially when Johnny Blaze transforms into the Ghost Rider for the first time. I like other supernatural antiheroes like Spawn and Hellboy, but I think Ghost Rider is the ultimate supernatural antihero! So if you like comic book antiheroes then I highly recommend that you see this movie!
The Net (1998)
"Interesting show to know about"
I never knew this TV series existed until a few months ago when I saw the entire series available on DVD at my local video rental. I am a fan of the movie of 'The Net' with Sandra Bullock so I was interested strait away when I saw this TV series. I found this TV series quite enjoyable, it has the same kind theme as in films like 'The Fugitive' and 'North By Northwest'. Laura Langton is brilliant in her role as Angela Bennett, she is a great actress in fact I think she is a lot prettier than Sandra Bullock. This TV series has the same basic plot as in the feature film. Angela Bennett is a computer genius and software troubleshooter. She comes across a program she was never meant to see. A program used by a secret organization known as the Praetorians who use the Internet to manipulate world events. And before Angela knows it her identity has been deleted and she has been given a new identity "Elizabeth Marks" a cyber-terrorist on the FBI's most wanted list. So Angela travels from place to place trying to avoid both the the Praetorians and the police and FBI. While at the same time trying to thwart the Praetorians attempts to disrupt society, trying to stay free and alive and ultimately bring down the Praetorians.
Angela Bennett is also assisted by this mysterious online email contact known only as the "Sourcerer" who is voiced by Tim Curry and Angela communicates with him via an email chat room. So I think this TV series is very interesting to know about. If you liked 'The Net' movie with Sandra Bullock then I highly recommend this TV series.
DOA: Dead or Alive (2006)
"If you loved the video game series you might like this movie"
I am a huge fan of the Dead or Alive video game series. Although I can't say that movie is excellent I didn't find it too bad. This movie didn't have any actors that are very well known, which is the sort of thing you'd expect for a movie like this one. Most of the cast are professional models or professional wrestlers with little or no previous acting experience. This movie has most of the same characters that are in the video game series, but this movie mainly focuses on the five female fighters.
These fighters include Kasumi a rogue Ninja Princess Tina Armstrong, an American pro-fighter, Christie Allen a British assassin and master thief, Ayane another Ninja fighter and Helena Douglas an American fighter.
All these fighters have basically the same occupation and nationality as their counterparts from the video game series except for Helena Douglas. In the video game she is French and apart from a fighter she is also an opera singer. While Ayane has violet coloured hair just like her video game counterpart, in the video game Christie has white hair, while in this film she has blonde hair. A lot of the characters have the same relationships with each other as their video game counterparts. For example Tina's bad relationship with her disgruntled father and Ayane's grudge against Kasumi. So in some ways these characters were a lot like their counterparts from the video game.
There was also one scene in this film where the female fighters are involved in a competitive game of beach volleyball which would be a reference to the the fourth game in the 'Dead or alive' video game series titled 'Dead or alive: Beach volleyball extreme' in which all the female fighters from the series are involved in a beach volleyball game on a tropical island.
But other than that there was definitely a lot of action and a lot of great fights scenes. Including some scenes where the female fighters wear bikinis. Although I'll admit this movie doesn't have much of a storyline, I still fought this was a great action girl movie and I love gorgeous female fighters! So this film was like Charlies Angel's meets Kill Bill!
So if you like the video game series, I really recommend that you see this movie. You might like it.
The Triangle (2005)
"A great mini-series from the creators of Independence Day, X-Men and Farscape!"
I've been interested in this mini-series ever since I first learned about it back in October of last year. It wasn't just the plot that caught my attention, but also the fact that this mini-series was written and produced by two great film makers and one great TV producer combined! They include Dean Devlin the producer and co-writer of Independence Day, Bryan Singer the director of the X-Men films and Rockne S. O'Bannon the creator of the science fiction/fantasy series Frascape.
So ever since I learned about this mini-series I really wanted to now when it would premiere here in Australia. For months I've been seeing commercials on television about the The Triangle which only say "Comming Soon" with no clue of an exact start date, which really annoyed me. But at last this great mini-series has finally premiered here on Australian television!
If you like science fiction/mystery stories than this is just the mini-series for you. It has a very suspenseful and complicated plot about a psyche, a journalist, a meteorologist and an underwater scientist who are hired by a shipping billionaire (played by Sam Neill) to solve one of the world's greatest mysteries: the Bermuda Triangle. This shipping billionaire also has a problem. A number of his ships have recently disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle and he is desperate for answers. So these four characters all of whom have only just met head out on a very dangerous investigation to solve a phenomena unlike anything the world has ever known!
As for the cast of this mini-series there are only three main cast members that I am familiar with. They include Sam Neill an actor who is very well known here in Australia. Bruce Davidson, an actor best known to X-Men fans for his role as Senator Robert Kelly in the first X-Men film. And Catherine Bell who is best known for her role in the TV series JAG.
So all together this is a brilliant miniseries and I loved it! So if you like stories about the Bermuda Triangle and you love science fiction mysteries than this is just the mini-series for you!
Mysterious Island (2005)
"If it didn't star Patrick Stewart I may not have watched this film at all"
I've always been an admirer of Jules Verne's novels. But this movie was certainly poorly produced. This movie has a completely different storyline from Jules Vernes novel. Like Jules Verne's novel, the film tells the story of a group of prisoners who have escaped from a Confederate prisoner of war camp during the American Civil War by a hot air balloon. They travel over the pacific and their balloon is wrecked on an island in the south Pacific, an island which is filled with mysterious secrets.
While Captain Nemo did appear in the novel of 'Mysterious Island' he didn't appear in the novel until the third quarter of the novel, while in this movie he reveals himself close to the beginning. Also there were no female characters in the novel of 'Mysterious Island' while this includes film a woman who works as a nurse at the Confederate prisoner of war camp and her teenage daughter who are among the escapees in the balloon and stranded on the island. But I suppose it does give a bit of interest to the film. While there were certainly cutthroat pirates in the novel of 'Mysterious Island' I don't recall any giant animals.
The giant creatures were certainly very terrifying in this movie. There was a giant praying mantis, giant scorpions, giant ants, and even a giant bird. These creatures certainly presented a great suspense throughout the film, the computer generated affects didn't look realistic at all. Not much fun I don't think.
This film certainly needed a lot more to make it interesting. It needed a better cast of actors for one thing, but most of all this film needed a better story-line, the story in this film is extremely dull, it's not like the story in the novel at all. Overall the only good thing about this movie was Patrick Stewart, he is such a brilliant actor! In fact he was the only reason I kept watching the film. So I have to admit this 'Mysterious Island' movie is extremely dull, I don't recommend it to anyone.
The Poseidon Adventure (2005)
"Certainly worth looking at if you enjoyed the original film"
While the original movie was quite suspenseful this movie is over three hours long which not only makes the suspense last longer but also allows you to focus more on the characters and their own personal issues. This movie really had me really excited especially during the final twenty minutes, which grabbed me by the throat and refused to let go!
This movie has the same basic storyline as the original film, a capsized cruise ship the Poseidon and a group of survivors makes an audacious attempt to reach the hull of ship while trying to bypass many life threatening hazards and death traps. But while the Poseidon was capsized by as tsunami in the original film, in this TV remake the Poseidon is capsized by a terrorist bombing. Also while the original film only told the story from the survivors point of view, this film also explains the situation outside the Poseidon. For example the ocean radio monitoring service trying to figure out what happened to the Poseidon when all radio contact is lost, and once the situation is learned we see the navy and marines racing against time to reach the Poseidon and discussing how they are going to rescue any survivors.
However there will also be another remake of 'The Poseidon Adventure' released early next year. This time it will be a major film called 'Poseidon'. Why are they making to remakes so close together? I'm not sure but it has been done before. For example in 1996 a TV movie was released of 'Titanic' just a year before James Camerons multiple Oscar winning film was released.
Also I wonder why this TV movie was released in Australia before it is even released in America? But it's good that we Aussies get to be the first to see this great TV remake of a classic suspense thriller. All together this is certainly one highly suspenseful movie and I certainly recommend it to anyone who is a fan of the original film.
Sahara (2005)
"If you love Cussler's Dirk Pitt novels, you would hate this movie"
I am a huge fan of Clive Cussler's Dirk Pitt novels. Ever since I've started reading them I've recommended Cussler to everyone I know. So I was looking forward to this movie hopping it would be a much better movie adaption than 'Raise The Titanic' (the only other movie based on one of Cussler's novels). But I was sadly disappointed. I had heard that Cussler wasn't impressed with this movie but I decided to see it anyway so I could make my own judgment, and I felt foolish to have had good expectations about this movie.
The cast wasn't all that bad. Matthew McConaughey was made up rather close to Dirk Pitt's description: tall, broad shouldered, black wavy hair and green eyes. I can't say Steve Zahn was that good for the role of Al Giordino. Al is meant to have dark curly hair and Italian features, while in this film he just as sandy colored hair. William H. Macy was good for the role of Admiral Sandecker but he would have looked better if his hair and beard looked more red. Rainn Wilson was good for the role of Rudi Gunn and he occasionally wear glasses in this film as he occasionally does in the novels.
This movie did have a lot of action and suspense but what I hated about it is that this movie doesn't follow the story in the novel. In the novel there are two prologue chapters. One about an American Civil War ironclad ship which disappears at the end of the war. The other about a female aviator named Kitty Mannock who mysteriously disappears over the Sahara desert. While this movie only includes the prologue about the ironclad ship. In the novel Dirk Pitt wasn't searching for the ironclad, he was trying to find the source of the plague or the "red tide" as it is described in the novel and he never heard anything about the ship until he met a mysterious prospector in the desert who claimed he was looking for it. The evil African dictator General Kazim and the corrupt French industrialist Yves Massarde working with each other and creating the chemical waste facility in the desert which is causing the plague and threatening to destroy all life in the worlds oceans is the story in the novel as well the only problem was is that these two villains just weren't as menacing as they were in the novel.
According to cast lists I've read on the internet Clive Cussler's daughter Dayna was supposed to appear in this movie as Kitty Mannock (the long lost female aviator) and she doesn't. The scene was deleted. Thought this movie does have a scene in which Dirk and Al use a crashed air plane to create a land yacht is a scene in the novel which take place in the film to, but in the novel the crashed air plane was that of Kitty Mannock who had a significant role in the novel but in this movie there is absolutely no mention of her at all. Also in the novel the ironclad ship was found to have a secret connection with the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and that isn't in the film either. So many of the main events which take place in the novel and make 'Sahara' one of Cussler's finest novels are not in this movie which make it very upsetting to Cussler fans.
So once again movie makers have turned one of Cussler's great novels into a bad film. Al though the film wouldn't seem all that bad to those who like action and adventure and have never read any of Cussler's novels. But if you are a huge fan of Cussler's Dirk Pitt novels like me, this movie will truly disappoint you.
Aliens of the Deep (2005)
"James Cameron does it again!"
The first movie I ever saw at an IMAX theater was 'Ghosts of the Abyss' or 'Titanic 3D' which was an incredible experience. Seeing that film I believe is the closest thing to really exploring the wreck of the Titanic the images were simply incredible. So I was excited to hear that James Cameron has created a new documentary, this time exploring the wondrous life that exists in the deep ocean.
This film I thought was just as incredible as 'Ghosts of the Abyss' James Cameron's last IMAX documentary. In fact it seems that Cameron is now more attached to creating documentaries. He even says in this film "I love underwater exploration. It's much more fun than any Hollywood film fantasy." Indeed this films takes you on a remarkable journey into life that exists where you least expect it. In a deep, dark and completely fascinating world unlike anything you've see on Earth. I personally think of this film as a real life version of James Cameron's 'The Abyss'.
This film also explores the concept of traveling to 'Europa' one of Jupiter's moons. The moon's surface is covered by ice and oceans exists underneath. So many scientists believe that life may actually exist in these alien oceans. The possibility seems wondrous. So I guarantee you this film will take on a wondrous and magical journey that you will never forget!
Trekkies 2 (2004)
"I've met some of the people in this documentary"
I believe Trekkies 2 is defiantly worth watching if you enjoyed the first Trekkies film. Some of the Trekkies interviewed in the first Trekkies film appear in Trekkies 2 so it is interesting to see how they have grown and how they have continued using Star Trek as part of their lives. But what I think is most interesting is seeing Star Trek fans and conventions in other countries. The first Trekkies film only had American fans, but Trekkies 2 takes you to Star Trek fans and conventions in France, England, Germany, Italy, Brazil, Serbia and of course my country: Australia.
I've attended three Star Trek Conventions in Sydney so far. Including the one in June of 2003. Denise Crosby was a guest at this convention, she was here in Sydney to film Trekkies 2, I even briefly chatted with one of Denise's cameramen. Some of the Trekkies attending this convention were interviewed for Trekkies 2 but I wasn't one of them. I've met several of the Australian people interviewed for this documentary. One of them is Peter the host for the Sydney Star Trek Conventions. He claims that he's been attending conventions for twelve years. I also know Tammy who you see briefly dressed as a Romulan. I've also seen the huge teddy bear which is dressed in a Starfleet uniform. I've also met this "Admiral". I've forgotten her name but she is wearing a red Admiral's uniform and has these two white tentacles on her head. She calls herself a Human/Andorian (She appears during the end credits).
So it was nice to see some of the people I've met in this documentary and I am surprised that I'm the first Star Trek Convention attendee who has commented about this film.
Elektra (2005)
"An excellent comic book movie"
Elektra is such a great character and Jennifer Garner really does suit this role very well. We first saw Jennifer Garner as Elektra in the Daredevil movie which didn't do well, so it was certainly worth making this spin-off about Elektra herself. In 'Daredevil' Elektra wore a black costume which was good but in this film she wears a red costume just like in the comics which I think looks a lot better.
For those who don't know Elektra she is a deadly assassin, but she's much more than that. Elektra isn't an evil character if that's what you're thinking. Elektra is often hired to kill someone, but she is mostly hired to kill corrupt and powerful people. So by killing these corrupt people she is making a difference. Elektra is defiant, has a sense of honor, is sure of herself and has a good heart. So you would want her by your side if you are in trouble.
This movie had brilliant cinematography and brilliant visual effects. Some of the fights scenes I though were more advanced than 'Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon'. There were also some excellent villains in this film. These powerful warriors with supernatural powers who see Elektra as a worthy opponent. If you want to know who wins you'll just have to see the film.
This movie like most 'Marvel Comic' movies is quite loyal to the comics so I believe fans of the Elektra comics will love this movie. I rate it 8 out of 10.