Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction

I stand by my previous statement: “Samuel L. Jackson was the top grossing actor of all time, and… aside from the near constant stream of profanity in many of his movies, I have to agree he is a pretty talented actor.”

The Guinness Book of World Records confirmed his status, as reported in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Daily News, and MSN.com.

The movie reviewed here is definately NOT for children, and probably not for most other people either.

• GENRE: Horror / Supernatural Thriller
• ACTORS: Nick Stahl, Rose McGowan, Amy Smart, Ben Marten, Kim Grimaldi, Brian Lynner, Justin Marxen, James Serpento, Jack Mishler, Shane Simmons
• RATING: R
• PARENTAL NOTE: Not intended for children. Bad language, questionable situations, and violence–none of which are extreme or pervasive. A view of death is presented which most Christians will view as contrary to Christian beliefs.
• INTENDED AUDIENCE: This movie is intended for fans of the genre, and may not be appreciated by others.
• GENERAL PLOT: (No spoilers) This is another movie in which you are not sure who is dead and who is alive.¹ The main character in the movie works in a funeral home. He fakes his death as part of a bet to see if anyone comes to his funeral. Or is he really just “faking” his death?? He meets up with his old girlfriend from 10 years ago, when they were seniors in High School. They have issues.
• REVIEW: My chief grievance against this movie, is that it has some of the elements of a sappy love story. Some might call it a horror chick flick. But if you can get past this obstacle, Dead Awake isn’t a bad film. There are some “dark themes.” In fact, a good deal of the film is shot so that only a few colors are discernible, with of the rest of the screen mostly a washed out gray. Both characters and their surroundings are creepy. One dark scene tumbles after the next, as we try to sort out who is alive, who’s dead, and who is just plain stark raving mad. The action builds slowly–too slowly for the taste of some, I’m sure. But the story is laid out very methodically, so that the conclusion generally makes sense.
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  As mentioned above, a view of death is presented which most Christians will view as contrary to Christian beliefs. Not good. But this is fiction, after all. We don’t know much about the role faith plays in the lives of any of the characters. But for the most part they are shown as good people with good values. One of the main characters quotes from the Bible, and accurately describes a Bible story. I can’t say this reference really boosts the value of the film from a Christian point of view. But these days, it’s nice to see ANY Biblical reference in popular culture which is presented in anything other than a negative context.
• RECOMMENDATION:² This is a horror movie. Many people will be highly offended by every movie in this genre because of the questionable elements mentioned above. However, if you are a fan of this genre–I recommend watching this film.
• RATING (out of 5 stars): ★★★★

The movie reviewed here is definitely NOT for children, and probably not for many other people either. Please see my previous post on why horror films are reviewed on a Christian website like K_Line Christian Online.

• GENRE: Sci-Fi Horror
• ACTORS: Whitney Able, Scoot McNairy
• RATING: R
• PARENTAL NOTE: Not intended for children. Some bad language. Big bad monsters, of the type that might scare small children and timid adults. Moderate violence.
• INTENDED AUDIENCE: This movie is intended for fans of the genre, and may not be appreciated by others.
• GENERAL PLOT: (No spoilers) Simple plot. A Man and a woman must traverse a monster infested “infected zone” in northern Mexico to reach the presumably “uninfected” USA.
• REVIEW: First of all, make sure you are watching the right movie. There are several movies with the same or similar title. When I started watching this film, I was looking forward to a cheesy fake monster movie on the order of vintage 1960′s Japanese cinema. I wasn’t disappointed in that regard. But this movie turned out to be a lot more. For example, the monsters. Generally, the less seen of monsters in a movie like this, the better. But we are shown a full view of the monster prototype in the opening scene. Does it look ridiculous? In a way, yes, it does look silly. Or maybe not. It is presented in a manner (often mostly off screen) that seems plausible. Then there is the monster graffiti on the walls in Mexico. If the monsters are depicted in graffiti, there must be something to them.

  Surprisingly perhaps, there are some real redeeming points worth mentioning in MONSTERS. In many movies of this ilk, the characters are shown revelling in debauchery; and sex is shown as casual, expectable and without consequence. Not so in MONSTERS. In this movie we see very little of the actual debauchery. An arm and pair of feet projecting from under the sheets show us that a prostitue is in a bed–suggestive, but not explicit. And we are shown that sin has it’s consequences–a missed relationship with a son, and a missed opportunity to escape the monsters.

• RECOMMENDATION:¹ This is a horror movie. Many people will be highly offended by every movie in this genre because of the violence, language and other questionable elements. However, if you are a fan of this genre–I highly recommend MONSTERS. It has a simple, but compelling story to tell. The characters, though imperfect, are mostly likable and interesting. Good and evil are shown. We are shown the benefit of virtue and the consequences of sin.
• RATING (out of 5 stars): ★★★★★

Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction

You may have noticed that last week’s list of the top 20 Movies of all time contained three movies starring the same popular actor. In fact, he is also the top grossing actor of all time–Samuel L. Jackson. The movies, with top twenty ranking¹ are:

[9] PULP FICTION, 1994* (43%)
[15] SNAKES ON A PLANE. 2006* (21%)
[16] [ANOTHER MOVIE, not listed here] (21%)

The movie reviewed here is not for children.

AWAKE

• GENRE: Thriller
• ACTORS: Hayden Christensen, Lena Olin, Jessica Alba, Terrence Howard, Christopher McDonald, Thomas A. McMahon, Sam Robards, Poorna Jagannathan, Steven Hinkle, Charlie Hewson
• RATING: R
• PARENTAL NOTE: Not intended for children. Some bad language and questionable situations. Cutting of flesh in a hospital operating room setting.
• INTENDED AUDIENCE: This movie is intended for fans of the genre, and may not be appreciated by others.
• GENERAL PLOT: (No spoilers) A rich man goes into a heart transplant operation immediately after his late night wedding. You are supposed to be asleep during this type of surgery. See if you can guess from the title if this was the case in this movie.





• REVIEW: The basic premise portrayed in the movie — being awake during surgery, despite anesthetic — is apparently accurate though rare. But not nearly rare enough if it is YOU under the knife. Actually, the statistics are pretty consistent with the 1 in 700 cases as quoted in the movie. As someone with absolutely no familiarity with hospital protocol, many of the other events portrayed in this movie seem hard to believe. Apparently, my suspicions are well founded. But aside from the inaccurate portrayal of hospital procedures in heart transplants, this was really a pretty good movie. Plus, I’ve been informed by people more knowledgeable than me that Jessica Alba is not too hard on the eyes, if need be. The plot swerved wildly from what I would have expected. HINT (but no spoiler): I expected a sappy romance.
• RECOMMENDATION: This is a thriller movie. Many people will be highly offended by every movie in this genre because of the bad language and other questionable elements. However, if you are a fan of this genre–I think you will enjoy this somewhat sappy love story. But–unexpectedly, the two people REALLY in love are not the husband and wife.
• RATING (out of 5 stars): ★★★★

The movie reviewed here is definately NOT for children. Also probably not for people who are not fans of horror.

• GENRE: Thriller, Mystery, Horror
• ACTORS: Liam Neeson, Christina Ricci, Justin Long, Josh Charles, Chandler Canterbury, Celia Weston, Shuler Hensley, Anna Kuchma, Rosemary Murphy, Malachy McCourt, Laurel Bryce, Luz Alexandra Ramos
• RATING: R
• PARENTAL NOTE: Not intended for children. Nudity. Presentation of Death is contrary to Christian beliefs. Bad language and questionable situations. Some violence, but there is little gore or excessive blood. If a behind the scenes look at a funeral parlor (heavily fictionalized) makes you queasy, I don’t think you’ll enjoy the subject matter here.
• INTENDED AUDIENCE: This movie is intended for fans of the genre, and may not be appreciated by others.
• GENERAL PLOT: (No spoilers) A young woman has a fight with her boyfriend, and storms off in her car. She’s killed in a car wreck. Wait. Oh, yes–she’s killed in a car wreck. (?)





• REVIEW: I have no idea why the title of this film has a “dot” in the middle of the name, “After.Life”. This story presents a view of what happens to a young woman after she dies, but before her her funeral. If this concept doesn’t sound like something that would interest you, rest easy. That may not be what the movie is about at all. This is one of those movies that keeps you guessing as to exactly what is happening. The whole presentation is extremely creepy. Which is good for a horror movie. The lead roles in this film are played by Liam Neeson (Schindler’s List, 1993) as the funeral director, and Christina Ricci (Black Snake Moan, 2006¹; and Addams Family Values, 1993), as the possibly recently departed. I don’t know what corpses really wear while awaiting their funerals, but in the case of Christina Ricci’s character, it is not much. As the story plays out, you are never sure whether she needs to call 911, or just relax and accept her fate. In the end — and despite lots of leads and possibly false leads — there is a strong argument that the central question in the film is never answered.
• RECOMMENDATION:² This is a horror³ movie. Many people will be highly offended by every movie in this genre. Additionally many people will be offended by the presentation of death in a manner contrary to Christian beliefs. Or maybe not. In any event, this is an interesting story, which is played out well. If you enjoy thoughtful horror, you should appreciate After.Life.
• RATING (out of 5 stars): ★★★★★

FOOTNOTES:

The movie reviewed here is NOT for children.

• GENRE: Comedy / Romance
• ACTORS: Ricky Gervais, Tea Leoni, Greg Kinnear, Kristen Wiig, Alan Ruck, Billy Campbell, Danai Jekesai Gurira, Aasif Mandvi, Uzimann, Dennis Albanese, Megan Byrne
• RATING: PG-13
• PARENTAL NOTE: Not for children. Some bad language and questionable situations. The portrayal of death is inconsistent with a Christian viewpoint.
• INTENDED AUDIENCE: I believe the film makers and promoters view this film as being appropriate for children over the age of 13. I do not, because of the misleading portrayal of death. Adults, who recognize this movie as fiction, will enjoy the movie if they are not easily offended by the other questionable situations and language.
• GENERAL PLOT: (No spoilers) A man’s near death experience (actually he “dies” for short period of time) enables him to see the disembodied spirits who walk the streets of New York.





• REVIEW: As noted above, this film has some problems from a Christian point of view. That is, occasional foul language and inappropriate themes. Also, the portrayal of death in a manner completely inconsistent with truth, as known by Christians. But this movie is, after all, fiction. It presents a world, which we know to be false, but which is entertaining none the less. The leading character, Ricky Gervais, was the “boss” on the original BBC version of the popular, but vulgar, TV program, The Office. His character–essentially the same as his role in The Office, but slightly quirkier–is a hoot.
• RECOMMENDATION: The story is an entertaining fresh take on a common theme. The acting is first rate. Subject to the above cautions, this movie is well worth watching, in my view.
• RATING (out of 5 stars): ★★★★

The movie reviewed here is definitely NOT for children, and probably not for most other people either. Even fans of the zombie genre will be sorry for wasting time on this movie.

• GENRE: Zombie Horror
• ACTORS: Dexter Fletcher, Dickon Tolson, Lana Kamenov, Anton Brejak, David Carradine¹, Tricia McMurtry, Jody Willis, Marisa Zaza, André Bharti, Leanne Dixon


Autumn, R (2009)

• RATING: R
• PARENTAL NOTE: Not intended for children. Some bad language. Extremely disturbing imagages and situations. Violence.
• INTENDED AUDIENCE: This movie is intended for fans of the genre, and may not be appreciated by others.
• GENERAL PLOT: (No spoilers) A mysterious virus “kills” most of the population in a matter of seconds. The dead don’t stay down. The survivors cope.





• REVIEW: This is an example of a really, really bad zombie movie. The film looks like it was shot by 4 or 5 guys with a camcorder. One suspects this movie was shot with little or no knowledge of how to actually make a movie; and with no budget at all. The acting is just plain awful. The zombies look like corpses that were dipped in a barrel of used motor oil. The only dispute here is whether the ghouls are technically zombies. People bitten by a “traditional zombie” die and re-animate as zombies with an instant taste for human flesh. But in “Autumn,” people die from the “virus,” and after a day or so re-animate as walking dead. At first these “walkers” show no signs of aggression. But the ghouls/walkers progressively develop more violent tendencies. Oddly though, the film makers do create some pretty disturbing images. And this twist on the zombie theme might be interesting in more capable hands.
• RECOMMENDATION:² This is a zombie horror movie. Many people will be highly offended by every movie in this genre because of the graphic violence, gore, language and other questionable elements. Even if you are a fan of this genre, Autumn is a terrible movie on so many levels. I recommend watching the trailer instead. It is scarier, much shorter, and looks more professionally produced than the feature film. The movie gets one star based on the potentially interesting twist on the zombie theme.
• RATING (out of 5 stars): ★

FOOTNOTES:

Two words describe this movie: "COMPLETE TRASH." There is a reason why "Dear John" did not linger long at the theaters, and was rushed to DVD sales. Though seen my some people as a harmless diversion for teenage girls, this film's moderately trashy content really disqualifies "Dear John" from even a conditional recommendation.

• GENRE: Sappy Romance
• ACTORS: Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried, Richard Jenkins, Henry Thomas, D.J. Cotrona, Cullen Moss, Scott Porter, Gavin McCulley, Jose Lucena Jr., Leslea Fisher
• RATING: PG-13



• PARENTAL NOTE: A PG-13 implies to many parents that this film is suitable for teenagers. In this case, I don’t agree. As detailed below, this movie pushes a fairly trashy theme, even for those who are not put off by the sappy story line. Limited cursing and brief nudity.
• INTENDED AUDIENCE: If you like the Twilight movies, or most any movie with the word, “Princess” in it, then Dear John is aimed toward you. This movie is intended for teenage girls, who apparently swoon en masse at the sight of Channing Tatum’s bare chest. His bare chest is on display for quite a bit of the film. I don’t agree that the movie is appropriate for even this group.
• GENERAL PLOT: (No spoilers, although the title to this movie is something of a spoiler) Boy meets girl at the beach. They fall in hopelessly in love during their two weeks together. Boy goes off to war. They exchange letters.




• REVIEW: First of all, I need to explain why I am reviewing a sappy romance movie. Dear John is really not my cup of tea. It was recommended by one of the original founders of the Christian Men’s Breakfast group. Which proves again, that one ought not believe EVERYTHING that one hears. OK, about the sappy premise, as expressed in the GENERAL PLOT section of this review… The story is trite and worthless, to be sure. But I admit that lots of people enjoy mindless fluff in a movie. Frankly, I personally object to the fact that a movie supposedly about a member of the Army’s “Special” Forces, only portrays a couple of combat related kills. Also, there are no zombies in this movie, nor any psychopathic killers. Admittedly these shortcomings are also a matter of personal taste. My real objection is the way in which the relationship between the main characters veers in an “inappropriate” direction. A movie which portrays sin as wholesome and normal, does more harm than a movie which portrays immoral behavior without pretending that sin is anything but sin. This is especially true, when the target audience is approximately teenagers.¹ Although I hesitate to nit-pick the small points of a movie, I’m uneasy about the killing off of one of the character’s spouses to make room for “true love.”
• RECOMMENDATION: This film does look like it was produced by professional film makers (add one star), and it arguably has a plot, such as it is (add one star). However, for all the reasons set out in this review, I have to subtract so many stars that this movie should really have a negative rating. As it is, zero (0) stars is the lowest I can rate this movie, which is actually giving Dear John undeserved credit. This film is worthless, and trash. Don’t waste your time.
• RATING (out of 5 stars): zero stars!

FOOTNOTES:

RATING (Out of 5 stars): ★★★★★