Equilibrium (2002)

Equilibrium (2002)
Kurt Wimmer

This movie takes place in a post-World War III society where the government has completely eliminated war by enforcing mandatory injections to all citizens that disables human emotion. In this 1984-esque setting one government cleric accidentally drops his medicine and does not get a replacement. This one event leads him to experience emotion, and discovers everything that is wrong with what the world has become. He then proceeds to stop taking his medicine all together and finds his purpose in life, to take down the corrupt government and free the human race.

This was another sweet film. Many viewers claim that this movie steals ideas from other works, but I think the makers of this film incorporated ideas they had seen in other works very effectively to make their own creation. The acting was superb, and after Batman Begins, the Prestige, and this, Christian Bale is becoming one of my favorite actors ever. The visual and audio techniques were solid and the story was pretty good. This is a very entertaining film and while its not quite a 5, I still think it is a great film.

Acting: A
Audio: A-
Visual: A
Story: B+
Other: B-

Parney Points: 4

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

Lucky Number Slevin (2006)
Paul McGuigan

Wow. Just wow. This movie was awesome. I cannot believe that it didn't get more praise. Every single scene of this movie was great, and I really mean every one. There was not one part of this movie that I didn't like. Acting: amazing! Audio: sweet! Visual: perfect! Story: awesome! If you have Netflix or Blockbuster total access, move this movie to the top of your queue, it's that good. 5 Parney Points easy. Go see it.

Acting: A+
Audio: A
Visual: A
Story: A+
Other: A

Parney Points: 5

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

Saw III (2006)

Saw III (2006)
Darren Lynn Bousman

Saw III. How do I feel about this? It seems to me that in order to give my review on this film, I have to share how I felt about the other Saw movies. I thought that Saw I had potential because it had a very clever story, but they focused too much on the gore of it and the acting was just pathetic, some of the worst acting Ive ever seen in my life, seriously it was worse than a high school play. Saw II on the other hand had much better acting, a sweet twist and really got the message across about respecting the life given to you, I really liked Saw II. Now we have Saw III, and it's really tough for me to decide. The acting was the best of the 3, Tobin Bell is just incredible, but unfortunately the movie again focused way to much on the gore and almost didn't try developing the plot until the end. Worst of all I think the writers completely ruined Amanda's character and a lot of the actions in the film could not be explained at all. If you liked Saw I you will probably like this movie too, and I would still recommend seeing it, but I was disappointed, I think it could have been much much better. I am really anxious to see whether Saw IV will be more like movies I and III or more like II.

Acting: A
Audio: B-
Visual: B
Story: C
Other: D

Parney Points: 2

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

The Island (2005)

The Island (2005)
Michael Bay

I am pretty torn about this film. There were a lot of corny lines and some plot holes, but other than that is was actually pretty good. The acting was great, especially by Djimon Hounsou, who took a very poorly written character and turned him into a two dimensional major character. The visual effects were pretty cool and suprisingly not too over the top. The score of the film was phenomenal, but they could have used it a little more throughout the entire movie. The story was predictable at times and completely original, but still pretty clever. My only big problem with this film is that I couldn't really tell what it was trying to be. It started out science fiction, then went to comedy, then action thriller, then drama at the end. At about the halfway mark, its almost as if one movie just ended and the second half is something altogether different. I feel like this is a movie that a lot of people may not like, but I think if you go into it with an open mind, you will be pleasently suprised and so I will give it 3 strong Parney Points.

Acting: A
Audio: A
Visual: B+
Story: B
Other: B-

Parney Points: 3

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

Red Eye (2005)

Red Eye (2005)
Wes Craven

Nothing original here, same old "scary" movie where the female lead is being threatened and has to overcome the man who transformed from nice guy to killer. Luckily the good acting saved me from total boredom. Cillian Murphy again plays a very convincing evil role and Rachel McAdams does great as the female lead. It was mainly disappointing to me because the female character had so much strength that I wasn't worried or scared for her at all, which the viewer needs to be in order for a film like this to be effective. Overall it was disappointing; it was just not scary.

Acting: B+
Audio: D
Visual: D
Story: D
Other: F

Parney Points: 1

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

Stranger Than Fiction (2006)

Stranger Than Fiction (2006)
Marc Forster

Well I knew the good luck would run out soon enough and this was it. I am really questioning if this was a comedy, because it was really not funny. There were a few chuckles here and there but I can't tell if it tried too hard or didn't try hard enough. There were some visual techniques that were pretty cool, but they were completely out of place and the audio was pretty weak. The story was different, but just because something is unique does not mean that it is good. The acting was fine but the big surprise was how great Maggie Gyllenhaal was. I was shocked to see how much better of an actor she is than her brother, but then again that doesn't take too much. Overall, this movie is just not worth seeing. Make sure to check out the review on my podcast, which should be up on Monday.

Acting: B-
Audio: C
Visual: B
Story: D
Other: F

Parney Points: 2

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

Crank (2006)

Crank (2006)
Mark Neveldine & Brian Taylor

Another surprise. Again I went into a movie thinking it was going to be so/so and it turned out to be entertaining! maybe I should change my expectations next time. Although Crank was exactly what it looked like it would be, (a fast past movie full of action and lust) it was actually a good movie too. The visual effects were stunning, but I'm not talking about the big explosions and all, the use of little details and special techniques were outstanding. For example there were subtitles at the bottom of the screen during one scene, and when the camera switched to the speakers point of view, the subtitles could be seen on the screen backwards, from behind, as if the subtitles were coming from the man talking. Now that's clever The use of audio was effective and the acting was convincing. However this is definitely an R-rated film and I would advise parents not to let their kids see it. The movie is in no way an academy award nominee, but it is definitely a fun movie to watch with your friends one weekend. Check out my podcast, "Parnell's Movie Reviews" on itunes for the full review.

Acting: B
Audio: A
Visual: A+
Story: C-
Other: C

Parney Points: 3

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

The Guardian (2006)

The Guardian (2006)
Andrew Davis

This was another movie that surpassed my expectations. I was skeptical at first when I saw that Ashton Kutcher was the star and I was wondering if this would be the film that Kevin Costner would find his way back to his good days. I have to say I was impressed, both of their performances were fantastic. The visual effects were nothing too special, but they got the story across. The music was good as well but again nothing too amazing. The story was great, but since it spent so much time showing the Coast Guard training, the climax felt too rushed. Overall it was a good film that is worth watching when you need a movie on Friday night. Check out my podcast, "Parnell's Movie Reviews" on itunes.

Acting: A
Audio: B
Visual B
Story: C
Other: A

Parney Points: 3

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

An Inconvenient Truth (2006)

An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
Davis Guggenheim

This movie surpassed my expectations, but maybe that was because my expectations were so low going into it. The visual effects were hands down the best part of the film, the director managed to make it bearable to have Al Gore on screen for extended periods of time, and actually allowed me to take some of his claims more seriously. Audio was weak, and although I usually hate films that attempt to tell you what to think, this one actually did not do a half bad job of it. Check out my podcast "Parnell's Movie Reviews." on itunes to hear my reviews.

Acting: B (Not really acting here, but still)
Audio: C
Visual: A
Story: C
Other: C

Parney Points: 3

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.

Babel (2006)

Babel (2006)
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu

I thought this movie was extremely well made, it used great visual techniques and the music was very effective. The acting was great and overall was a great film. Even with a scattered timeline, the movie was easy to follow, the story was interesting however I was disappointed that it didn't really go anywhere. The writers started out with a great foundation but then did not build at all. A story that had a stronger ending would have taken this movie from great to fantastic. Check out my podcast "Parnell's Movie Reviews." on itunes to hear my reviews.

Acting: A
Audio: A
Visual: A
Story: C+
Other: A

Parney Points: 5

To visit the imdb listing for this film, click here.