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miketurnham
Reviews
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
Disappointing!!!
I've not long returned from the cinema, having watched the forth instalment of the Indiana Jones saga and I feel like I've been on the receiving end of an Indy fist fight! I am gutted! This is probably (sad to say) going to be the biggest disappointment I have all year.
There are so many flaws in this film that any entertainment value you may be able to muster, is completely overshadowed by the lack of expectations met.
The biggest let down for me, is the performance by Ford, while he does well with the action scenes he was given to work with, the delivery of his lines are passionless and emotionally monotonous.
The rest of the cast jostle for screen time and never get the opportunity to develop, especially Marion and Spalko. Which made the relationship between Marion and Indy feel rushed and insincere, and the rivalry between Indy and spalko is equally lack-lustre.
I could have got on board with the story, (a brave decision, to go sci-fi, 50's b-movie) had it not been completely ruined with an awful ending, most likely selected by monkeys throwing there own faeces at a selection of alternate endings, mailed in by Buffy the vampire slayer fans.
Then there's the use of CG. Well it was inevitable, and used in place of matte paintings, scale model scenery, mine car chases what have you, it would be welcome. But for some bizarre reason, the film is overrun by CG animals and insects. This completely takes away any aspect of fear or peril instilled by such scenes as the snake pit in raiders and the insects in doom.
Overall this just didn't feel like an Indy film to me, even john Williams seems to have phoned in a bland soundtrack which was instantly forgettable.
I would even go as far as saying the Star wars prequels didn't let me down this much. where I kind of appreciated that Star Wars is first and foremost a kids film series, Indy for me, while a part of my childhood, has matured with me over the years.
As Indy says "it ain't the years kid, its the mileage", i sadly wont be getting a lot of mileage out of this one....
JPod (2008)
Jpod gets the Ugly Betty treatment. (unfortunately)
OK, so I read the book a few months ago and really enjoyed it. I actually have a friend who works in a similar job to the "podsters" and found a lot to relate to with the characters. However after seeing the first two episodes of the series, I've got to say it's a major let down. First off the humour just seems to fall flat. Areas of the book where I was laughing out loud, once converted to the small screen, lose their edge and wit.
Unfortunately the characters haven't converted well either, not only is one of my favourites, Evil Mark missing altogether but Ethan's character development and relationships seem rushed. Worst of all he appears a lot less compassionate and therefore less likable. Other major characters don't live up to their literary cousins either, whether this is due more to poor scripting or bad acting I can't quite decide yet.
All in all, a clever and witty book has been stripped of its best qualities, leaving us with unlikable characters which have lost their clout in translation and therefore meander from one wacky plot turn to the next.
After episode three, the series could grow on me like a new haircut you hate at first.....but I seriously doubt it.
Your only hope with this series is to have not read or intend to read the book. but I wouldn't recommend that.