Forensic Science Movie Reviews

They really assembled quite a cast here. These characters are so cool, you could watch them forever. Hudson, Bishop, Hicks, Drake, Vasquez, Apone, Newt and even Gorman. And let's not forget the fabulous Sigourney Weaver as Ripley, who gives a blistering performance here.

Anyway, enough reviewers have given the proper praise to this amazing film, so I'm not even gonna bother trying. I'm just here to give my 5-stars, and shut the hell up.

I love this damn movie.

James Cameron's screenplay is an awesome extension and expansion of the Aliens' and Ripley's story- recounting the all savageness and terrifying qualities of the aliens without re-treading old material and even adding a few new twists that make them even scarier than they already were. Not the least of which is having many, many more of them.

The acting and directing are excellent. Unlike most Horror/Thrillers, each of the characters (with a couple of minor exceptions) is unique and memorable, and even though they do rely a little heavily on some clichéd stereotypes, they play the stereotypes so well we love them anyway. When we lose any of them, and not to spoil the plot or anything but we do lose quite a few, the impact is clearly felt. We like these guys and we want them to win.

The opening is good, explaining what happened before and how it has affected Ripley, and setting up a believable reason why she would ever consider going back. Once things get going- and boy, do they get going- we know it's going to be, as one character puts it, "an express elevator to hell- going down!" I mean that in a good way- this is one smooth, scary, fun ride.

Some of the action scenes are chaotic- which is of course as it should be when you are trying to depict a fierce battle or a life-and-death struggle. In the heat of combat the characters can't see or know exactly what's going on and that's part of what makes the situation so frightening. By accurately showing the disorienting nature of these action sequences, Cameron makes us feel just as terrified as the characters in the movie are, and yet he never makes things so confusing that we are completely lost. You always can tell generally what's happening, and usually, what's happening is bad. In between the action scenes there are lots of good "atmosphere" scenes which serve to both further explain the story, flesh out the characters, and heighten the overall tension and sense of fear.

Anyone who says that the production values are less than excellent hasn't seen the movie or doesn't know what they are talking about. The sets are huge, extremely detailed, and have that rare but important "well-worn" look. Nothing in the movie looks like fake or like a prop- it all looks real and like it's been used- just like it would in real life. Too often in sci-fi the set designers seem to think that in the future, nothing ever gets dirty or that every ship and remote outpost will have The Galaxy's Best Maid Service - everything looks new and perfectly clean. In Aliens, things look appropriately modern but they are also messy- In a word, everything looks very realistic. I think the budget for the movie was about $20M, which in 1986 was not low, but it looks like they spent twice that much.

A note about the Aliens- the original movie introduced without question the scariest and deadliest movie monster ever created. It's been copied and imitated but it would be hard to imagine making one better. James Cameron succeeded - twice. First, the one flaw in the original is that we didn't get to see much of it and when we did, it was fairly obvious that it was a guy in a suit. I mean, it was a scary-looking alien suit, but it still looked, and moved, like a guy in an alien suit. Now, in this sequel, Cameron specifically set out to make the aliens look MORE "alien." To do that he did a number of things, including adding some detail to the overall creature design, but most importantly he changed the way they move- instead of walking upright on the ground all the time, these aliens crawl, jump, slither and swim- on the walls, on the ceiling, and on the floor, and, except when they are camouflaged and waiting in ambush, they are always moving. Their tails thrash about behind them and over their heads, and they contort into un-natural positions. In some cases, it's still guys (actually girls, I think, because they had to be very thin and flexible) in suits, in other cases, it may be animatronics, in every case, they look like freaking monsters. Sometimes, you see them move in the shadows and you can't quite tell which end is up- that is on purpose and it's effect is to make them look more like aliens/bugs and less like us. That, in turn, makes them even scarier. On top of all that, Cameron gives us a completely new form of alien that was alluded to in the past but now is seen it all it's glory- and without giving away details to the three people who haven't yet seen this movie- well, let's just say she's a real bad-ass.

This DVD contains some extra scenes which have been re-inserted into the film- some of them are interesting and add a little extra back story about Ripley and life on the colony before it gets overrun, including a nice piece that explains how that happens. Some other scenes later in the movie I could do without- they add a little extra action but they're not that interesting. Some of the other extras include some behind-the-scenes stuff about how they designed the creature effects and how they shot certain scenes- kind of cool if you are a film student or die-hard fan of the franchise.

If you liked the original, or if you have any interest in sci-fi, action, or horror flicks, this DVD is already in your collection or it ought to be.

Unlike Francis Ford Coppola who still had half of the origianl novel to work with, or George Lucas who was working on a trilogy (or Peter Jackson who is doing both), Cameron was faced with trying to build upon a pair of fairly success first features. After transforming the "haunted house" movie "Alien" into a military movie with "Aliens," Cameron starts with an equally significant change in the premise for "Terminator 2," turning the T-101 from the villain into the hero. When you are dealing with a machine it is just a question of reprogramming it accordingly. Consequently, Cameron is basically able to repeat the entire opening of the original movie (two naked guys come from the future, one is good and one is bad) and then pivot the entire film on the basis of that one little change.

Now, you do not want to think about time paradoxes too closely because they tend to fly apart once logic or the laws of physics are invoked, but since the original T-800 failed to kill Sarah Connor the machines of the future and their overlord Skynet, send back a T-1000 (Robert Patrick) to kill John Connor (Edward Furlong). Sending back a dozen Terminators of pretty much any model number would probably work better, but the idea here is qualitative improvements rather than quantitative (i.e., this is not "The Matrix Reloaded" with its infinite versions of Mr. Smith). John is saved by another T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and proceeds to rescue his mother (a buffed up Linda Hamilton) from the crazy house, with the T-1000 in close pursuit.

The final significant difference between this film and the original is that Cameron and his co-writer William Wisher have Sarah Connor taking the offensive. While the T-1000 is hunting mother and son, she is going to do her own manipulation of the time line by taking out Dr. Miles Bennett Dyson (Joe Morton), the scientist whose creative fingerprints end up being all over Skynet's creation. Dyson is helped by having a couple of significant bits and pieces from the T-800 of the original film (which is where we get right into a "Planet of the Apes" time loop, so let's just not go there). For me, Dyson is the most interesting character in the story, and a clear break from science fiction film stereotypes in a whole lot of ways.

It is easy to get taken away with the special effects in "Terminator 2" because of the quantum leap that films took from the water tentacle in Cameron's "The Abyss" to the liquid metal of the T-1000, but the human dimension of the dysfunctional Connor family dealing with their particular fate in terms of future events. The Terminator is now the father figure for John Connor, but the boy has a few lessons of his own to impart to his personal Terminator. Of course, the "Judgment Day" sub-title is something of a misnomer give not only what happens in this film but in the 2003 finale to the trilogy, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," but this 1991 film (and all its myriad variations available on DVD) is a textbook example of how you can intelligently go about putting together a sequel in this genre that will make a lot of money and not insult fans of the original.

Unlike Francis Ford Coppola who still had half of the origianl novel to work with, or George Lucas who was working on a trilogy (or Peter Jackson who is doing both), Cameron was faced with trying to build upon a pair of fairly success first features. After transforming the "haunted house" movie "Alien" into a military movie with "Aliens," Cameron starts with an equally significant change in the premise for "Terminator 2," turning the T-101 from the villain into the hero. When you are dealing with a machine it is just a question of reprogramming it accordingly. Consequently, Cameron is basically able to repeat the entire opening of the original movie (two naked guys come from the future, one is good and one is bad) and then pivot the entire film on the basis of that one little change.

Now, you do not want to think about time paradoxes too closely because they tend to fly apart once logic or the laws of physics are invoked, but since the original T-800 failed to kill Sarah Connor the machines of the future and their overlord Skynet, send back a T-1000 (Robert Patrick) to kill John Connor (Edward Furlong). Sending back a dozen Terminators of pretty much any model number would probably work better, but the idea here is qualitative improvements rather than quantitative (i.e., this is not "The Matrix Reloaded" with its infinite versions of Mr. Smith). John is saved by another T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and proceeds to rescue his mother (a buffed up Linda Hamilton) from the crazy house, with the T-1000 in close pursuit.

The final significant difference between this film and the original is that Cameron and his co-writer William Wisher have Sarah Connor taking the offensive. While the T-1000 is hunting mother and son, she is going to do her own manipulation of the time line by taking out Dr. Miles Bennett Dyson (Joe Morton), the scientist whose creative fingerprints end up being all over Skynet's creation. Dyson is helped by having a couple of significant bits and pieces from the T-800 of the original film (which is where we get right into a "Planet of the Apes" time loop, so let's just not go there). For me, Dyson is the most interesting character in the story, and a clear break from science fiction film stereotypes in a whole lot of ways.

It is easy to get taken away with the special effects in "Terminator 2" because of the quantum leap that films took from the water tentacle in Cameron's "The Abyss" to the liquid metal of the T-1000, but the human dimension of the dysfunctional Connor family dealing with their particular fate in terms of future events. The Terminator is now the father figure for John Connor, but the boy has a few lessons of his own to impart to his personal Terminator. Of course, the "Judgment Day" sub-title is something of a misnomer give not only what happens in this film but in the 2003 finale to the trilogy, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," but this 1991 film (and all its myriad variations available on DVD) is a textbook example of how you can intelligently go about putting together a sequel in this genre that will make a lot of money and not insult fans of the original.

They give it only one star because Iceman's skin didn't *ice* over, because Storm's eyes weren't blue, because in their minds Cyclops wasn't given enough screen time. Some of them gave it one star because they think they see a parallel to Star Trek 2. Grow up people. I submit most of this plankton decided that X2 stunk well before they saw it. These are people who wanted it to stink, and want you to believe them. So sad.

My personal favorite is from a moron who said, "We know Pyro is bad so can't we just get on with it so we can enjoy a Pyro/Iceman fight?"

Hey dummy, YOU know this, some us had better things to do growing up than read comics and watch cartoons. It's a continuous franchise, and you want the filmmakers to encapsulate all the traits and qualities of the characters in one movie, rather than watch them evolve into what you generally "know" about the character over time.

Here's the deal: since as of this review the DVD is not out yet, I recommend that those of you who want the movie to be a carbon copy of the comic book, save the money you'd spend on this to perhaps take a date (if you can get one) out to a movie you might both enjoy. I read the bad reviews of X2 and all I see is the comic book guy from The Simpsons, refusing to like a quality show, with a quality story and cast shot by a quality director. This movie could have been a flawless classic, and they'd all hate it anyway simply because it wasn't a direct recreation of a comic or just because they are outcasts raging against anything popular, unlike them. It's classic, bitter-geek B.S. Go ahead and click on how this doesn't help... I didn't write this for you dummies. I wrote it for anyone considering putting any stock into your negative, self-important comments, not that they actually will, considering all the people who disagree with you.

X2 is a good continuation of the first X-Men movie, well paced and well made. The opening sequence with Nightcrawler was an amazing way to start the film. I think he has become my favorite mutant not only with his abilities but with his take on life as a mutant.. His character showed how far special effects have come in filmmaking. I don't think I've ever seen a movie where the special effects were so seamless. From his transportation abilities to Mystiques shape-shifting between 4 or 5 characters in the span of a few seconds, everything looked and felt as though it was actually happening.

One of the loudest pops the movie got was for a small character who could walk through walls, and her part was only 30 seconds long. The audience was completely taking in by everything that was happening, and having special effects that made everything flow smoothly was a big factor in that.

Other stories were continued or added, such as the love triangle with Cyclops, Jean Grey and Wolverine, as well as seeing Iceman's relationship with his family, and his ongoing love affair with Rogue. And then of course *pyro* the one mutant who goes over to the bad guys, and the one mutant who doesn't make it out alive, but is seeming to metamorphose into a much bigger character.

There were times however where the movie did slow down, which normally isn't bad, but when you have a movie with so much amazing action, any time it slows down, it feels like its crawling. In a normal movie it might feel like it flowed right along, but when you're going 100mph and you slow to 25mph, it hits you harder than if you're cruising along at 50mph the entire time.

"X-Men United" lives up to its name: Whereas the original X-Men movie was basically "Wolverine, guest-starring some X-Men," the sequel greatly expands the time we spend with the other characters, and all of them are the better for it, including a more compelling vision of Pyro than even the best of the comics has shown us.

While the story picks up months after the original, this time, the story is bigger, grander, and more exciting. The film hits the ground running with an amazing sequence introducing the teleporting Nightcrawler, in an eye-popping attack on the Oval Office. Contrast this to the obviously foam rubber girders wrapped around the X-Men at the climax of the last film, and it's immediately obvious that the special effects this time around will be something to enjoy, not something to overlook, and so they are.

As always, the acting, particularly by Hugh Jackman and Ian McKellan, is top-notch. The strong central presences of the films' Wolverine and Magneto continue to ground audiences in the larger-than-life world of the X-Men and with the tease in the last few moments of the film egging on comic fans, it'll be too long to wait for the third installment in this series.

Recommended for superhero fans, including those who thought the first film didn't live up to its potential.

They give it only one star because Iceman's skin didn't *ice* over, because Storm's eyes weren't blue, because in their minds Cyclops wasn't given enough screen time. Some of them gave it one star because they think they see a parallel to Star Trek 2. Grow up people. I submit most of this plankton decided that X2 stunk well before they saw it. These are people who wanted it to stink, and want you to believe them. So sad.

My personal favorite is from a moron who said, "We know Pyro is bad so can't we just get on with it so we can enjoy a Pyro/Iceman fight?"

Hey dummy, YOU know this, some us had better things to do growing up than read comics and watch cartoons. It's a continuous franchise, and you want the filmmakers to encapsulate all the traits and qualities of the characters in one movie, rather than watch them evolve into what you generally "know" about the character over time.

Here's the deal: since as of this review the DVD is not out yet, I recommend that those of you who want the movie to be a carbon copy of the comic book, save the money you'd spend on this to perhaps take a date (if you can get one) out to a movie you might both enjoy. I read the bad reviews of X2 and all I see is the comic book guy from The Simpsons, refusing to like a quality show, with a quality story and cast shot by a quality director. This movie could have been a flawless classic, and they'd all hate it anyway simply because it wasn't a direct recreation of a comic or just because they are outcasts raging against anything popular, unlike them. It's classic, bitter-geek B.S. Go ahead and click on how this doesn't help... I didn't write this for you dummies. I wrote it for anyone considering putting any stock into your negative, self-important comments, not that they actually will, considering all the people who disagree with you.

X2 is a good continuation of the first X-Men movie, well paced and well made. The opening sequence with Nightcrawler was an amazing way to start the film. I think he has become my favorite mutant not only with his abilities but with his take on life as a mutant.. His character showed how far special effects have come in filmmaking. I don't think I've ever seen a movie where the special effects were so seamless. From his transportation abilities to Mystiques shape-shifting between 4 or 5 characters in the span of a few seconds, everything looked and felt as though it was actually happening.

One of the loudest pops the movie got was for a small character who could walk through walls, and her part was only 30 seconds long. The audience was completely taking in by everything that was happening, and having special effects that made everything flow smoothly was a big factor in that.

Other stories were continued or added, such as the love triangle with Cyclops, Jean Grey and Wolverine, as well as seeing Iceman's relationship with his family, and his ongoing love affair with Rogue. And then of course *pyro* the one mutant who goes over to the bad guys, and the one mutant who doesn't make it out alive, but is seeming to metamorphose into a much bigger character.

There were times however where the movie did slow down, which normally isn't bad, but when you have a movie with so much amazing action, any time it slows down, it feels like its crawling. In a normal movie it might feel like it flowed right along, but when you're going 100mph and you slow to 25mph, it hits you harder than if you're cruising along at 50mph the entire time.

"X-Men United" lives up to its name: Whereas the original X-Men movie was basically "Wolverine, guest-starring some X-Men," the sequel greatly expands the time we spend with the other characters, and all of them are the better for it, including a more compelling vision of Pyro than even the best of the comics has shown us.

While the story picks up months after the original, this time, the story is bigger, grander, and more exciting. The film hits the ground running with an amazing sequence introducing the teleporting Nightcrawler, in an eye-popping attack on the Oval Office. Contrast this to the obviously foam rubber girders wrapped around the X-Men at the climax of the last film, and it's immediately obvious that the special effects this time around will be something to enjoy, not something to overlook, and so they are.

As always, the acting, particularly by Hugh Jackman and Ian McKellan, is top-notch. The strong central presences of the films' Wolverine and Magneto continue to ground audiences in the larger-than-life world of the X-Men and with the tease in the last few moments of the film egging on comic fans, it'll be too long to wait for the third installment in this series.

Recommended for superhero fans, including those who thought the first film didn't live up to its potential.

In fact, Shatner is relatively subdued for the better part of the movie. His Captain Kirk is feeling his age and faced with an estranged son that would prefer to remain estranged. Lost love and missed opportunities, and a tight reign from director Nicholas Meyer (Time After Time, ST6), help keep Shatner in check.

Also marks the screen debut of Kirstie Alley as Lt. Saavik.

The DVD package is put together very well. Once Paramount decided to start doing a good job with DVD special editions. They took it all the way to the bank.

This is easily one of the top Star Trek films ever made, and my personal favorite. It combines everything that made the original series so beloved, such as a well drawn out plot, great character development, humor, and of course, exceptional space combat featuring the U.S.S. Enterprise. William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and Deforest Kelley (Kirk, Spock, McCoy) are the big three, and their interaction really makes the film. Also of note is newcomer Kirstie Alley as Saavik in what would prove to be her breakout role. This directors cut (ooh la la extra scenes and commentary) of a great sci-fi movie is a must have for Trekkies everywhere.

"A Clockwork Orange" is Stanley Kubrick's best film, and one of my favorite films overall. It is one of those movies that you can watch over and over again, and still be amazed everytime. I have never been as shocked as I was when I saw this film. The first 20 minutes involves two brutal beatings and an extremely graphic rape scene. It only gets more shocking from there on out. The story also offers a hilarious sense of irony. Alex is supposedly cured of all his afflictions, but is thrust back into a world of violence when forced to deal with his victims. The camera work used in this film is amazing, and the music is wonderful. All of the actors do an outstanding job in this film, but Malcom McDowell gives one of the most memorable performances ever as Alex. I have never experienced such a use of my emotions before when dealing with a fictional character. He will make you hate him and shock you with how he acts before he is captured. But then Alex makes you feel almost sorry for him with what he has to go through afterwards.

Stanley Kubrick has made some great movies with "2001: A Space Oddesey", "Full Metal Jacket", "Barry Lyndon", "Paths of Glory", and "Dr. Strangelove...." In my opinion however, " A Clockwork Orange" is his best film. The overall story, acting, music, camera work, and truly shocking scenes set it apart from the rest. It is definately a must own, because it only gets better with repeated viewings. The DVD however, is very mediocre. The quality of the film itself is just above average, and there are no extras at all.

"A Clockwork Orange" is Stanley Kubrick's best film, and one of my favorite films overall. It is one of those movies that you can watch over and over again, and still be amazed everytime. I have never been as shocked as I was when I saw this film. The first 20 minutes involves two brutal beatings and an extremely graphic rape scene. It only gets more shocking from there on out. The story also offers a hilarious sense of irony. Alex is supposedly cured of all his afflictions, but is thrust back into a world of violence when forced to deal with his victims. The camera work used in this film is amazing, and the music is wonderful. All of the actors do an outstanding job in this film, but Malcom McDowell gives one of the most memorable performances ever as Alex. I have never experienced such a use of my emotions before when dealing with a fictional character. He will make you hate him and shock you with how he acts before he is captured. But then Alex makes you feel almost sorry for him with what he has to go through afterwards.

Stanley Kubrick has made some great movies with "2001: A Space Oddesey", "Full Metal Jacket", "Barry Lyndon", "Paths of Glory", and "Dr. Strangelove...." In my opinion however, " A Clockwork Orange" is his best film. The overall story, acting, music, camera work, and truly shocking scenes set it apart from the rest. It is definately a must own, because it only gets better with repeated viewings. The DVD however, is very mediocre. The quality of the film itself is just above average, and there are no extras at all.

"A Clockwork Orange" is Stanley Kubrick's best film, and one of my favorite films overall. It is one of those movies that you can watch over and over again, and still be amazed everytime. I have never been as shocked as I was when I saw this film. The first 20 minutes involves two brutal beatings and an extremely graphic rape scene. It only gets more shocking from there on out. The story also offers a hilarious sense of irony. Alex is supposedly cured of all his afflictions, but is thrust back into a world of violence when forced to deal with his victims. The camera work used in this film is amazing, and the music is wonderful. All of the actors do an outstanding job in this film, but Malcom McDowell gives one of the most memorable performances ever as Alex. I have never experienced such a use of my emotions before when dealing with a fictional character. He will make you hate him and shock you with how he acts before he is captured. But then Alex makes you feel almost sorry for him with what he has to go through afterwards.

Stanley Kubrick has made some great movies with "2001: A Space Oddesey", "Full Metal Jacket", "Barry Lyndon", "Paths of Glory", and "Dr. Strangelove...." In my opinion however, " A Clockwork Orange" is his best film. The overall story, acting, music, camera work, and truly shocking scenes set it apart from the rest. It is definately a must own, because it only gets better with repeated viewings. The DVD however, is very mediocre. The quality of the film itself is just above average, and there are no extras at all.

The look of the film is tremendous. It's a highly stylized, art-deco world not unlike the first Batman movie, but a little darker, a tad more claustrophobic. And the effects are well-handled without exception. Add in a murder mystery, and you've got yourself an alternate reality worthy of exploration.

The performances are uniformly good, if a little mannered. The standout is Richard O'Brien (the butler from "Rocky Horror") as the lead "bounty hunter," Mr. Hand. He's creepy and belongs completely to the world of the film. Rufus Sewell, Jennifer Connoly, and William Hurt are more than passable, and Kiefer Sutherland's perfomance as a Lorre-esque psychologist must be seen to be believed.

If you surrender to the conceit of the film, you'll enjoy this immensely. If you are grounded in "reality," you might have some problems. I think this is a wonderful, stunning movie.

"Dark City" is one of the best Sci-Fi films that you will ever see. The story is in a gotham like city set in the 1940's. All of the costume and building designs are outstanding. Next, the story is extremely original. The idea of being able to alter reality, and keep it from an entire city is actually interesting. Alex Proyas did a great job with how he worked the characters into the story. All the main characters play an important part, and help to further develop the plot. Rufuss Sewel was outstanding as John Murdock. His determination to find out why he's so special is unreal, and when you find out why the "Strangers" are targeting him, you will be very surprised. Jennifer Connelly is great as John's wife. The emotion that she shows is very realistic. Nice chemistry between her and Sewell. Kiefer Sutherland gave my favorite performance. He is the wild scientist that helps "The Strangers" with their mission. It was definately a different role for Sutherland, but still great. William Hurt was great as Frank Brumstead. Plays the typical cop who only believes in rational explanations. "The Strangers" themselves were excellent and actually frightening.

"Dark City" is one of my favorite films. The settings, acting, and extremely original story make it a masterpiece in the Sci-Fi genre. The DVD does not have much in the way of extras, but it still the best choice because of the quality and the fact that it is extremely affordable. Definaley a must own!