There’s a scene in Fast 6 that is so poorly written and acted that I couldn’t help but burst into laughter. I don’t believe the writer’s intent was to evoke humor here; in fact it was supposedly one of the more meaningful parts of the film that was attempting to capitalize on years of escalating storylines and character development. I laughed all the same, and every time the script pumped the brakes on the action in exchange for drama, the unintentional comedy and cheesy dialogue only became more noticeable. If this was ANY other franchise, I would knock it for being a noisy, silly, stunt-filled showcase devoid of any real human emotion. However, this is the Fast and Furious series; it has long since fully embraced that identity and doesn’t pretend to be anything else. To go into this expecting to see a deep, thought-provoking summer movie would be akin to going to a strip club in order to meet a girl you can take home to mom.
Monthly Archives: May 2013
“Star Trek Into Darkness” Review by Jesse Schaffer
Depending on where you fall in the whole Star Trek vs. Star Wars debate, you may view the upcoming slate of films to be a period of intense competition or a window of rare opportunity. I’m inclined to side with the latter. After all, it’s not every day that the same promising young filmmaker is chosen to helm the two most iconic science fiction franchises in modern history, much less tackle them back-to-back. Myself, I’ve loved Star Wars since the opening credits crawled across my screen for the first time, while I never quite saw the appeal in Star Trek (go ahead Trekkies, have at me). However, J.J. Abrams won me over with his 2009 reboot and I’ve been eagerly anticipating the sequel ever since. As it turns out, my enthusiasm was well-founded. Darkness is my favorite movie of the year so far and now I’m more eager than ever to see what Abrams can accomplish with Star Wars, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it (only 2 more years!). Minor spoilers below.
Denver Nuggets Season Review
Here is a quick recap on the Denver Nuggets’ season and playoffs. Followed by a peek into the future.
Spring Breakers Review by Carrie Winters
First off, movie reviews are not really my thing, probably because movies are not really my thing. I’m the kind of girl who if a guy approached me at a bar and asked if I wanted to casually go back to his place and watch a movie, I’d respond with a, “no thanks, I’m really just looking for sex”. Just kidding, but seriously I feel like I’m one of the only people who do not enjoy movies. Other people float out of the theatre with a glow around their heart to remain there until the next time they get to, once again escape reality into a world where love conquers all, the hero always defeats the villain, and the Cubs win the pennant (It’s never going to happen). I, on the other hand, leave the theatre feeling like shit about myself. People are doing amazing things all around the globe and all I did this week was color-code my closet and watch an entire season of Teen Mom.
All Pain, No Gain
Ever since the first Transformers film I have attempted to avoid Michael Bay films. People’s hatred for Michael Bay is well documented and I don’t need to add to it. Just know that the only Michael Bay film I ever enjoyed was The Island. While that movie gets plenty of its’ own negative responses, I can’t help but love it. To be fair Scarlett Johansson mixed with science fiction will always be a win in my book. Scarlett Johansson mixed with anything really is a win in my book. Despite my dislike for nearly everything Michael Bay related, I thought I would give Pain and Gain a shot. It seemed unique and I thought I would enjoy seeing the director go out of his comfort zone. I was wrong.
Game of Thrones Power Rankings Week 5
With the season halfway done, it’s become a bit easier to predict how certain houses will finish this thing up. And yes, it’s been reflected in the rankings.
“Iron Man 3” Review by Jesse Schaffer
I can’t think of a more fitting choice for our first movie review than “Iron Man 3.” You see, here at Pegboard, we love us some comic book films. Not so much in the sense that we are hardcore fans of the source material, but more so because we are drawn to these characters and love seeing them come to life on the big screen. In a way, that makes these adaptations all the more enjoyable for us; we don’t fret over every little alteration and are usually free to absorb this genre of cinema as pure entertainment and nothing more. Phase 1 of Marvel Studios’ film series began with “Iron Man” in 2008 and culminated with “The Avengers” last May, and through it all we found each offering to be engaging and unique from the others, with only small differences in the level of quality.
Game of Thrones: “Kissed by Fire” Review by Jesse Schaffer
Wow. Just wow. I really hope you viewed “Kissed by Fire” with your laptop closed and no bathroom breaks, because this was ‘Game of Thrones’ at its best. The visceral thrill of witnessing dragons engulfing foul-mouthed slavers in flame may keep a smile on your face longer, but the gripping tension of watching these characters react to the horrific circumstances that pop up all around them is what makes this show so powerful. In the end, you don’t like ‘Game of Thrones’ because it gives you hope for the future and restores your faith in humanity. You like it because it fills you with angst and dread, and it’s just too damn hard to pull yourself away until you find out which characters made it out of the grinder alive. It’s only fitting that the highest compliment I can give this week’s installment is that it was an unsettling, heartbreaking foray through the roughest parts of Westeros.
Flimsy Film Critics 