Review: The Hunger Games

I went into seeing The Hunger Games without any prior understanding of the storyline as I had never read (or even heard of) the books; which means I get to judge the film as a stand-alone, rather than comparing it to the books.

So, as a film, The Hunger Games had its good moments, and slow, cumbersome moments. Overall, the directing (by Gary Ross--Pleasantville, Seabiscuit) was good, but not great. It seemed rushed in many places, then really slow in others. There just wasn't much consistency to the pace of the storytelling.

The acting was good. Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen was excellent. Other outstanding actors were Woody Harrelson, Lenny Kravitz, Stanley Tucci and Wes Bentley.

Personally, I thought there was too much pre-games drama, and not enough about the games themselves; just like I already stated about the pacing of this film.

So, is The Hunger Games a bad film? Absolutely not. Is it a great film? Sorry, but the answer is again a solid "no." Unfortunately The Hunger Games falls somewhere in between. I won't be seeing this one again because [for me] it just isn't worth another price of admission. For hardcore fans of the book, the answer may be quite different than this. But again, as a stand-alone effort, The Hunger Games falls well short of the hype and expectations surrounding it.

I won't be buying this one, and likely won't even be renting it. Then again, I am not a fan of the books who might look on this film as a phenomenal effort.

Review: John Carter

Prior to seeing John Carter, I had read numerous reviews of this Disney offering that ranged from bad to great. As usual, reviewers either loathed it because they can, or simply enjoyed the film. For me, I fall into the latter.

Based on the early 1912 graphic novel A Princess of Mars, this film is filled with fantastical, original storylines that are really quite refreshing in today's cinematic offerings. With source material written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the author of numerous Tarzan books as well as his Barsoom series, we are presented with ideas and theories that easily captured the imagination of people at the time because Burroughs wrote of wondrous concepts that science could not yet disprove.

John Carter is a well written film that moves along quite nicely. The conclusion was, for me, predictable, yet satisfying at the same time--a typical E.R.B. style ending.

Starring Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins, Mark Strong, James Purefoy and the voices of Willem Defoe, Brad Garret, Samantha Morton and Thomas Haden Church--amongst many others--this film was just fun to watch.

Don't let the negative reviewers tell you this film is garbage. Go into the theater expecting to have some fun and watch the science fiction storytelling as envisioned by an author a full century ago. Will this film win any awards? Highly doubtful. Is it a refreshing story in today's endlessly rehashed  Hollywood regurgitations called movies? Absolutely!

Go see it! Then, buy it on DVD or Blue Ray and your family will have a great film to sit down together and watch.

If I was healthy enough, I would go see this again. However, John Carter is a buyer for me, and I will watch this one numerous times!