Adapting a book into a film is hard, which is why some filmmakers just say “Forget it,” and make their own movie while paying lip service to the source material. Sometimes this cavalier attitude leads to some surprisingly amazing films. Let’s check out 10 of these films that have almost nothing in common with the books they come from. Continue reading
Wrongfully Accused is a criminally underrated film. Made in 1998, at the tail end of the golden age of movie parodies, it is a hilarious film that pokes fun at The Fugitive, Mission: Impossible, The Usual Suspects, and many other good and bad movies. It’s far from a perfect film, but it definitely warrants a couple viewings to make sure you pick up on all of its subtle (and not so subtle) humor.
I’ll frame my discussion of this film by talking about its six funniest scenes. I’ll include their start times, too, so you can skip right to them, if you like. Let’s get going! Continue reading
There are some terrible movies that have a special place in my heart because they took me by surprise with their superb endings. After doing my list of five good movies with bad endings, I figure it’s poetic to go ahead and serve up five bad movies with great endings. Let’s get started! Continue reading
I was extremely hesitant to see Kung Fu Panda 2 because I absolutely loved the first one. I know that seems odd, but I just didn’t think there was any point in trying to top perfection. Kung Fu Panda has such an airtight story, mirroring the growth of Po with his mentor Shifu, that there didn’t seem to be any room left for further development of these two characters. Anything that came next would likely just detract from what came before.
Boy was I wrong. I owe the makers of Kung Fu Panda 2 an apology for doubting their creative abilities. This sequel is even better than the original in many ways, and I am excited to tell you about my discovery of this gem of a film. Continue reading
Since I first saw Inception in theaters, it has been needling in my mind. Not because it’s a bad film, but because it is so creative and unique that I wanted so badly to come up with an equally creative way to talk about it, as it deserves. Ironically, the angle I finally found is one that emphasizes the aspects of this film that aren’t as original as I previously thought. This in no way takes away from Inception’s greatness, but it simply elevates another film in my eyes by how it managed to explore many of Inception’s themes and use impressive special effects 46 years before Inception was conceived.
The film I am talking about is Mary Poppins. I had never seen this old Disney film all the way through until recently, and I probably enjoyed it as much as an adult as my children did. I’m not going to make the case that these two films have the same plot or tone, but that they have a lot of similar themes, characters, and ideas. So get ready for a spoonful of mind-blowing adventure as we explore the similarities between Inception and Mary Poppins. Continue reading
Sam Raimi’s Oz the Great and Powerful is coming out this Friday, and it is just one in a long string of sequels, prequels, remakes and spinoffs of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, published in 1900. That book was adapted into several films during the Silent Era before making its colorful debut in the classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. But the adaptations didn’t end there, and they certainly don’t show any signs of slowing down, either. Just take a look at the Wikipedia page full of adaptations of The Wizard of Oz to see how widespread this story has become.
But why? Why do so many filmmakers, playwrights, novelists, musicians, and other creative people continue to gain inspiration from and put their own clever twist on The Wizard of Oz? I’d like to explore this idea for a little bit and see if I can come up with some satisfactory answers. This is gonna be Oz-some! Continue reading
How to Train Your Dragon, E.T., Raiders of the Lost Ark, Rocky and RoboCop all have perfect endings. They build up to an exciting climax, and after the heroes triumph, the films end on the best possible note. But I’m not going to talk about that right now.
I’m going to focus on movies that do just about everything right until they reach the very end. Unfortunately, they drop the ball at the last second and the audience is left feeling disappointed. Even though most of what they saw earlier was memorable and engaging, the final moment in the film stays with them like a splinter in their mind, causing a lot of irritation. I’d like to share five films that I would like a lot better if they ended sooner or if they had a better conclusion. Continue reading
I enjoyed a rare treat last week. I got to watch the newest James Bond film Skyfall without any preconceived notions about the film. I had not seen a single commercial, trailer, or clip of any kind from Skyfall, so I was free to let the film unfold bit by bit and be surprised by every twist and turn in the plot. And I loved every minute of it. However, since I am the Deja Reviewer, I couldn’t help noticing quite a few callbacks to another Bond film, The World Is Not Enough. That’s why I’m here today to share them with you.
I plan to focus on certain aspects of these films’ plots and their placement in the series to show just how impressive Skyfall’s success is. Continue reading
The first time I saw Ever After: A Cinderella Story, I had to stop watching at one point because it was such a depressing sight to behold. After the heroine Danielle has lost her father, been brutally whipped, had her heart broken, and been completely humiliated in front of the entire kingdom, I was convinced her situation had to start improving. Right? No! After all of that suffering, she gets sold into slavery. Slavery!! I could not believe the depths to which this movie would throw its main character in search of drama. At that point, I simply couldn’t bring myself to watch another second of this film. It was unbearable to watch such a likable character suffer so much injustice.
It took some serious convincing to get me to come back and finish the film, but I’m glad I did because shortly after the main character hit rock bottom for the dozenth time, she finally climbed out of the hole and found her well-deserved happy ending.
I was emotionally drained after watching this film. It marches from despair to triumph and back to despair so many times I lost track. Needless to say, I had no intention of going back and watching it again. But the same family that loved watching Newsies also loved Ever After, so I watched it with them a few times. And, surprisingly, it started to grow on me. I discovered that not everything in this film is as depressing as it seems at first. There’s actually a lot to smile about and enjoy in between the dark moments. I would like to share a few things I learned to love about Ever After so you, too, can enjoy this delightful little film. Continue reading
Star Wars is quite possibly the best film franchise of all time because not only are (most of) the films a blast to watch, but they are incredibly easy to spoof. I wrote about the original Star Wars parody, 1978’s Hardware Wars, a while back and I had a lot of fun doing that.
Lately I’ve been wondering what is the absolute best Star Wars parody. I can’t decide because each one has its strengths and weaknesses, and there isn’t one that clearly sticks out above the rest. Let’s go through my four favorites and see if we can come to a consensus on which one is the superior parody. Continue reading
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