Movies Archives - Page 2 of 2

Red Box Review: PROMETHEUS

September 26, 2018November 14, 2012 Steve MacDonald

Prometheus is Ridely Scott’s ostentatious pre-boot prequel of the Alien franchise and if you had $1.20 and were not sure whether to buy 0.32 gallons of gas, one-third of a box of cereal, 0.15 pounds of steak, pay full price for a compilation of every Pauly Shore movie ever made (weasel!), or to rent Prometheus…Prometheus is not the worst value for the money.

Actually, the effects are worth the $1.20. It’s quite beautiful to look at. But I was never all that invested with the plot or the characters (except for Captain Janek), and while there was nothing wrong with any of the performances I just never got into it.

You want to hear the premise? (Spoiler Alert)

Star Wars Episode 7 Due in 2015

September 26, 2018October 31, 2012 Steve MacDonald

Looks like Disney bought Lucasfilm for just over 4 billion dollars, and is now plotting the next three Star Wars Movies. “Episode 7” is already slated for a 2015 release; all other factors remain unknown. Oh, it will probably be in 3D unless that (ticket price raising) fad has died a happy (or unhappy) death before hand.

Yes, I did say 4 billion dollars. (Talk about Hakunah Matata.)

There is (obviously) all sorts of speculation about the project(s) not the least of which is what will George Lucas’ role be in a new trilogy now that his original vision has run its course?

My personal thoughts?

The Hunger Games

September 26, 2018July 2, 2012 Steve MacDonald

I read all three of these in record time. Two this past weekend. And while there are some curious stabs at environmentalism, and the can’t we all just get along meme, the most power full themes are the terror of absolute tyranny and the fact that we are all damaged goods. I highly recommend them. … Read more

Red Box Review – The Darkest Hour

September 26, 2018June 27, 2012 Steve MacDonald

Steve Casting with a Twist. The culture is always fodder and all politics all the time makes Johnny chop a hole in the bathroom door with an axe. So here’s a different flavor of Audio Pod-casting juice for your thirsty ears. A Red Box movie review: The Darkest Hour.

Notes:
Thanks for your continued patience as I try to fine tune the end product. FireFox 13.0.1 users may not be able to see this audio player–just follow this link instead. If you’d rather read the transcript you may do so on the jump.

[jwplayer mediaid=”26396″]

Coolest President Ever?

September 26, 2018May 28, 2012 Steve MacDonald

Not Obama, Lord no. 147 years after his presidency he’ll be lucky if there’s any mention of him beyond his being the first black president (After Clinton, of course. That and, perhaps, almost doubling the deficit in three years.) I am referring to Abraham Lincoln, whose “past” has taken a turn toward the macabre in … Read more

The Avengers Movie – Frikkin Awesome!

September 26, 2018May 6, 2012 Steve MacDonald

Some people think too much when they review a movie. Not so at GraniteGrok. I just spent a few hours with my kids at the movies. This is impressive because movies cost too damn much, I don’t make a lot of money, and my preference for Red Box is well documented. For me to haul … Read more

Are 3D Movies The Future Of Cinema?

September 26, 2018January 30, 2012 Steve MacDonald

Is 3D worth the extra cost and is it the future of cinema — Is 3D worth the extra cost

I read somewhere that within the movie industry there is a growing consensus that 3D movies are the future of the big screen experience. My initial reaction was that this is only true the way unemployment is the future of job growth in Obama’s America. Just because Nancy Pelosi says it is doesn’t make it so. ?

And the problems are related. Movies in 2D are already too expensive. 3D, which is the Mc Donald’s Drive-Thru cashiers equivalent of adding the apple pie to every order because there is no alternative, puts the big screen experience for the average American family out of reach. My response to that is to just stay home, and not just because you can’t get a lower ticket price if you bring your own 3D glasses. I have discovered what I like to call my Red Box mentality. It goes something like this.

Who is John Galt?

September 26, 2018April 4, 2011

For our Objectivist friends out there. The movie Atlas Shrugged: Part I will soon be opening…on April 15th of course!

“Battle: Los Angeles” TERRIFIC movie!

September 26, 2018March 21, 2011

These scummy, low-life aliens come from outer space, they wannna try ta wipe us out and steal our water, right? Oh yeah? Ain’t got a chance. There’s a reason they call the U.S. Marines "America’s 911". Watch Bill Whittle’s review of this new, patriotically subversive movie HERE. Based on Whittle’s review, I saw it yesterday. Great edge-of-your-seat movie! Invading aliens! Humans … Read more

“Politics is downstream from culture.”

September 26, 2018March 21, 2011

I like this guy, Bill Whittle. I like what he’s saying, and I like the idea of Declaration Entertainment. I’ll probably join. Check it out:

Atlas Shrugged – The Movie?

September 26, 2018February 13, 2011 Steve MacDonald

Someone said this was one of the most anticipated movies…..I….no, I was not anticipating it. In fact I didn’t know they were making it. And having watched the trailer, the first two words to come to my mind were ‘Red Box.’

But who am I? Certainly not a qualified movie critic. And this has to be at least as good as most of the crap that Hollywood makes. And Hollywood makes a lot of crap. So will this be more crap? I can’t tell you that from the trailer. Movie trailers are like airbrushed models in print. That’s about as good as it is ever going to look. So does it look good enough? Red Box.

I realize the books continued appeal is why we have a movie based on it. I get the whole idea of going Galt. And that will appeal to a slice of the movie-going public, but how big a slice. Ayn Rand is provocative but can it be translated onto the big screen, and since this is part one, how many more parts must we endure to resolve the driving question of this trailer. Who is John Galt?

One bonus I can comment on is that it is NOT scheduled to be released in 3D. Movies are made in 3D as an excuse to charge 50% more for a ticket, turning a nice family outing to the cinema into another reason to refinance. The movie is not supposed to cost more than dinner is it? For that kind of cash you should get live actors and sets and an intermission so you can hit the restroom and not miss anything.

But that doesn’t get us any closer to the trailer for Atlas Shrugged Part 1. So here it is, on the jump, one of the most anticipated Movies….well, we talked about that already. I watched the trailer. I’m still not anticipating it. Sorry.

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part I

September 26, 2018November 22, 2010 Steve MacDonald

My children have been raised on Harry Potter. So it is a foregone conclusion that we were going to see it though to the end. And it is not disappointing.
While I cannot comment on how well the movie hews to the book (so far)–we read it so long ago it seems–my oldest son claims they changed a few things, though nothing terribly important seems to have been lost.