Under Appreciated or Mediocre #1--Maggie Grace

So this is me trying to experiment with the blog a little. Maybe get away from just reviews. Hopefully this will become an ongoing thing. The world of acting is a harsh and competitive one, and not everybody can make it to the top. Unfortunately some of these actors might not deserve to be trapped in obscurity. So I'm here to sort the actors who deserve a second chance from the actors that need to rethink their careers. I'll look at several films in their career and make a verdict of whether these actors are...Under Appreciated or Mediocre!

First up is a lady any "Lost" fan will recognize, Maggie Grace! Unfortunately if you are a fan of Lost than you know her best as the self centered elitist, Shannon Rutherford.

Can her acting go past the blonde airhead variety? Let's take a look!

"The Fog"--So this seems like an unfair movie to look at because this is a terrible film. There isn't anything that could have made it better. Grace is basically the main character alongside Tom Welling (Smallville) so she gets lots of screen time. So how does Maggie Grace fair in a horrible horror remake? She does alright, she isn't hamming it up and acting like the typical dumb girl in a scary movie, she is one of the better actors in the movie. She definitely isn't the Shannon character, so it's good to see that isn't all she can do.

"The Jane Austen Book Club"--So there aren't a lot of films where Grace gets top billing, so I had do a chick flick, which honestly wasn't that bad. It was a little cheesy but in the "it's a chick flick" kind of way. The film has a large cast so Grace isn't quite as prominent as she is in "The Fog", but she's a major character. I really liked her in this to, she's a thrill seeker who is also very clumsy, which leads to a couple funny scenes where she injures herself in the name of being "extreme." She is never over the top in this movie either, she acts like a normal human being, and does a good job at it.

That really is it in terms of her most notable roles, everything else is pretty minor. This is kind of unfortunate because she really seems like a good actress.

Final Verdict: Maggie Grace has not been in much. Her biggest role to date seems to be Shannon from "Lost". The awesome thing is though as annoying and rude as that character was, it seems like that was done on purpose, not just how Grace acts. With the other two movies I saw It's pretty clear that she has some range. In "The Fog" she's believable and in "Jane Austen Book Club" she is believable, two completely different movies and she made her characters not only likable but realistic in relation to the story. One of the best things I can say is that she knows how to not overact.

          Another actress I really like, Jennifer Carpenter (Dexter, Quarantine), is OK, but when she tries to play up an emotion like fear or sadness it's borderline ridiculous. There weren't any times during Grace's performances where I didn't believe in her characters, or I thought they were melodramatic. It's good to know that she is continuing to work, maybe eventually she'll get even more lead roles, because she could really be a great actress some day. So Maggie Grace is definitely Under Appreciated.

More Art Related Stuff

Hadn't done a post in awhile so i thought I'd put up this thing I did for a friend of mine. This is a logo for his blog "The Hanging Tree" It's a pretty cool blog about music with the occasional movie review, check it out it's a good read.

The Inception Review; Sweet Dreams

So I'm going to try my best to remain spoiler free in this review, but if you want to know as little as possible, just skip to the last paragraph where I'll give a generic summation.

Christopher Nolan has proven once again that he can make a good movie. Honestly, I knew I would like the film before I saw it, but I was blown away with how immensely awesome the film was.

The story follows Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) a man with a "special skill set" that makes him adept at entering peoples dreams and stealing information. He's tasked with a job that, if successful, will allow him to see his family again, who he has been separated from. That's all I'm gonna say, cause this is amovie you have to experience for yourself.

The cast is phenomenal. Leonardo Dicaprio is, once again, great. This character has a few similarities to Teddy from "Shutter Island" but DiCaprio makes the character feel different that there isn't any weird deja vu. Ellen Page has definitely come a long way from "Juno" and does a good job of being Cobb's new found ally. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a good comic side kick with out being cheesy or annoying, and is pretty capable of doing things on his own. Tom Hardy has to be my favorite character though, as Eames a smooth talking con artist/thief.

Nolan is normally known for using as little CGI as possible, but even in this movie, where he used more than he normally would, it looks great. Obviously CGI is needed for some of the mind bending things they do, particularly during Ellen Page's first few dream experiences. There isn't really anything I can say negatively about this film, it was all around good. I could see the plot maybe being a little too complicated for some people, but It never feels convoluted or like their BS'ing their way through the plot.

*FINAL SUMMATION* See this movie!!! If you like psychological thrillers this is one of the best that's out there. Watch this movie and it's very clear that Christopher Nolan is one of the best directors of our time. The only "negative" thing about the movie is the length (2hr and 28min!) but this movie is so good I never wanted it to end. Go see it, the more money Christopher Nolan makes the more awesome movies we get! It's a win-win, and this movie is a definite 5 outta 5!

Predators Review; Get to the Choppa!!!

The predator franchise is a troubled one. The first film, "Predator", was an action/horror movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger fighting the predator in the jungle. It was a great film with memorable moments and an awesome finale. The 2nd film...wasn't great...but it was ok. Ignore the "Alien vs. Predator" movies, they're not too great... So where does "Predators" fit into the franchise's lineage? Well it's an interesting film that has a few issues, but manages to be highly enjoyable.

The film follows a group consisting of soliders, convicts, and other people who might be prone to violence, who wake up in a mysterious jungle. It soon becomes very clear that they are part of a game where they are being hunted for sport. The group must put aside their differences and work together to beat the predators at their own game.

Most of the movie is the group just slowly moving through the jungle and coming to realizations about what is going on. It's a lot more action oriented than the first two Predator movies, this isn't bad, but the more tense atmosphere of the first one was pretty gripping.

Casting in the movie is pretty good. Adrien Brody plays Royce, the main character, while he may not be quite as muscle bound as Schwarzenegger's character he manages to be a believable tough guy. The rest of the cast is great with the likes of Alice Braga (I Am Legend) and Topher Grace (That 70's Show), the others are great but the characters aren't fleshed out as much. The one actor I could not get behind was Laurence Fishburne, his performance is just a little too hammy.

There are a couple of new Predator creatures revealed in this film. They main one is a larger more deadly version of the type of predator we've come to know. This kind seems to be less about the hunt and more about the murdering, so it lacks some subtlety the originals had. A predator "dog" is introduced, while they are only in the film for a short period of time, it kind of makes for speculation of what other types of vicious fauna inhabit the predator world.

It is very obvious the makers of this film sought to bring the franchise back to it's roots. There are a lot of similarities to the original film. This isn't bad, but it also makes it hard to not compare it to the original. The movie is all right, it is a little silly at times, but it's a strong enough piece to make it feel like a promising new beginning for this new iteration of Predator films.

The bottom line is that if you liked the Predator films, than this is a nice addition to the franchise. It feels like enough of a reboot that even if you haven't seen the other Predator films this would be entertaining. All in all it's not anything extraodanairy, but what it does do it does right.

3 outta 5!!!

Despicable Me Review; The Almost Perfect Crime

This year has been pretty good for animated films. "How to Train Your Dragon" was a surprisingly awesome film, "Toy Story 3" was an expected awesome film, and there's a couple of other movies coming out this year that look like they might be pretty enjoyable. So how does "Despicable Me" stand up to the rest of the films out this year? Well it could have been awesome...but a few things hold it back, just slightly.

The film is about Gru (Steve Carell) a supervillain who is trying to top the theft of one of the great pyramids by stealing the moon. His rival, a new up and coming villain Vector (Jason Segel) stands between him and his goals. Through some crazy shenanigans Gru adopts three little girls who might be able to help him best Vector. The film follows a pretty predictable path, but it's an entertaining one. There's a lot of slapstick humor, which isn't necessarily bad. but there was one aspect of the film that just made the film entirely stupid, and ruined my enjoyment of it...

I hate these things...HATE these things, they are the epitome of what is wrong with children's films. The worst part of it is that there are hundreds of these...things in the film, they don't even explain what they are. They are the thing that constantly remind you that this movie was meant for kids...or stupid people. Like Jar Jar Binks or Donkey from "Shrek", everytime they're on screen they have to be either doing something wacky/or just being generally goofy. So yeah picture "Phantom Menace" with hundreds of Jar Jars...nightmarish. They've been the push of the marketing for the film, and unfortunately they are quite prevalent in the movie. Luckily most of the rest of the cast makes up for this awful aspect of the film.

Steve Carell does a decent job of making Gru seem sinister, but his inevitable turn to good is believable. The kids are pretty good, unlike in "The Children", they aren't unbearable, but at the same time act like realistic kids, only slightly annoying at times. The main antagonist Vector is a lot more annoying than the kids, and like the stupid minions, totally pointless, and his absence would greatly improve the film.

Overall it's a nice looking film, all the character designs are unique and have a nice charm to them. The locations in the film are colorful and pleasant to look at. The music is...well it's a mixed bag. Pharrell Williams composed the music for the film, the orchestral pieces are epic and are pleasantly reminiscent of a spy film. The regular songs are slightly grating, and feel out of place. All in all it's a good film, It's maybe meant for younger kids than something like "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" was meant for. If you can handle some very annoying characters, then you're in for a decent movie. 3 outta 5!

Some Art!

So here's some stuff i've neglected to put up, I've hit a wall, not so much a block, just a wall, but I think I'm getting around that, more to come; The top two things are logos I did on request the bottom two are just for fun. I don't know if anyone would want em' but I'm considering doing commissions for money, so if there was a picture you'd want me to do let me know!

Grow Up; Youth in Revolt Review

So It's really hard to figure out this movie. Im not gonna say I don't like it, but this film is just a very strange film.

First off, I know there some people out there who don't like Michael Cera, well bad news he's the main character. What makes this different from other Cera films is that he is more self aware then he usually is, that really is the whole crutch of the film. His character, Nick Twisp, is desperate to win the heart of Sheeni Saunders (played by Portia Doubleday). So to build up the courage to get with the girl he adopts the persona of Francois Dillinger, the complete opposite of the Michael Cera archetype.

The main cast is alright, really it's just Cera and Doubleday in the movie, everyone else is just kind of there. I always like Cera, i think he's pretty entertaining, but Doubleday comes off very robotic once and awhile. The supporting cast (everyone else) is great, and it's unfortunate they aren't in it more. Fred Willard is especially memorable as the odd neighbor that helps Cera when he's in a jam.

Characters are not enough to carry a film though, plot is kinda important too, and this is where I think the film falters. While there is a goal, the whole mission is carried out with little excitement. The motivations of the characters are just odd. Cera goes from just kind of being a quirky rebellious kid, to downright dastardly. There might be to many supporting characters as there is never enough time to actually get to know them. All you get is Doubleday and Cera, and they're not really enough to carry an entire film. It's weird because the film is barely over an hour, even if it meant stretching the movie out I wouldn't mind a little more character exposition.

If anything I would recommend this as a rent, it's just a very odd (kind of pointless film). I'm gonna give it a 3 outta 5. Cera fans might want to check it out, but the real Cera movie to check out this year will be "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World", at least I'm stoked.