Taken 2

Liam Neeson returns to kick butt and take names as ex-CIA agent Brian Mills in this sequel to the popular action flick. This time around the family members of the Albanian sex-traffickers who kidnapped Brian's daughter in the first film are dead set on revenge for their fallen comrades. An opportunity for revenge arises when they follow Brian, his ex-wife Lenore and their daughter Kim to Istanbul. There they kidnap Brian and Lenore, leaving Kim to figure out a way to help her parents out of this predicament.

Part of me was excited that there was a sequel when I first heard the news, but as I watched advertisements for Taken 2, I started hating the fact that it was happening. The story is the EXACT same as the original, except this time Brian himself is captured. I absolutely loved the first one, but the sequel is an extremely unnecessary, boring piece of junk. The first Taken felt like a sincere action flick that explored the possible dangers of traveling abroad and also the evil of the sex trade. This time around it was molded into a stereotypical revenge action flick, and a poorly made one at that. I admittedly was still entertained by the action sequences until one specific point in the movie lost me: (MINOR SPOILER WARNING) at one point Brian Mills meets one of the Albanian kidnappers face-to-face and engages him in hand-to-hand combat. It was a pretty cool sequence until the very end when the Albanian man is dying; Brian just puts his hand on the man's face, squeezes then shoves him into the wall...and the guy dies. Just like that. That part was completely unbelievable. I wish I could recommend Taken 2, I really wanted to like it, but it ended up just being another stereotypical revenge flick that's not worth your time or money.

Total Recall

In this updated version of the Arnold Schwarzenneger film from the 1980's Colin Ferrell fills Arnold's shoes as Douglas Quaid, a factory worker who builds robot security guards known as synths. Up until recently he's been pretty content with his life as a factory worker; he loves his job and his wife who is a security force officer for the United Federation of Britain. Earlier in the 21st century the Earth had been devasted by chemical warfare; as a result the majority of the population that is left is split between the United Federation of Britain and a smaller settlement on what used to be Australia known as The Colony. Douglas Quaid goes inbetween these two areas to get to and from work. Recently Quaid has been having strange dreams of being chased by the very machines he helps to build, and then meeting a mysterious woman, only to be separated from her at the end of his dreams. He talks to his wife about the dreams and she suggests that it might be because he feels trapped in their marriage and ultimately his life. He's unconvinced so he (unbeknownst to his wife and close friends) visits a place called Total Rekall. There he is told that he can have the time of his life by being infused with a drug that will allow him to fulfill his wildest dreams. He cautiously goes through with it, but right as he is about to enter the dream world Total Rekall is ambushed by the robotic security force and he must run for his life. What follows is a pursuit of the truth as Quaid tries to separate reality from fiction.

Total Recall is a very unnecessary remake of the '80's classic. I like Colin Ferrell but he fails to completely fill Arnold's shoes as Douglas Quaid. The original isn't much better; it's more of a campy action flick while this updated version tries (and fails miserably) to be serious. I found myself laughing uncontrollably at some of the stupid jokes and situations within Totall Recall. You're better off staying at home and seeing the original version.

The Dark Knight Rises

It's been said that a little white lie never hurt anyone. The problem with lying however, is you have to continue over time to keep your story straight so that no one figures out the deception. It is this deception that can be detrimental to both the person who is lying and ultimately to the one(s) being lied to. Gotham City has been living such a lie. Eight years prior to the events of The Dark Knight Rises Gotham City's greatest district attorney named Harvey Dent suffered an immeasurable amount of grief and rage when his fiancee died at the hands of the Joker. As a result he vowed vengeance on the ones who he believed had wronged him, both criminal and police officer alike. Harvey's path of vengeance led to his death during a confrontation with Commisioner Gordon and Batman. To preserve the "white knight" image that Harvey had made for himself Gordon and Batman devised a plan to allow Batman to take the fall for the crimes Harvey had committed and to also be blamed for his death. Fast forward eight years: Batman/Bruce Wayne has gone into hiding, and Gordon and the Gotham Police have enacted laws in "honor" of Harvey Dent to remove every dangerous criminal from the streets of Gotham. Things seem to be going well until the lie these two men forged eight years ago catches up to them in the form of a man who makes the Joker seem like a teenage hooligan: the masked terrorist named Bane.

The third and final chapter in Christopher Nolan's trilogy portraying his vision of the legend of Batman is without a doubt one of the best comic book adaptations I have ever seen. Tom Hardy (who plays Bane) gives Heath Ledger a run for his money as the best onscreen villain. To me it would have been better if Bane had been in the second film in the trilogy The Dark Knight, but he does an extremely great job here. Where the Joker waits until a building is empty to blow it up, Bane shows no such restraint. Bane is not in it for the money, or even in it for the fun of watching stuff blow up. Bane wishes to make Batman pay dearly physically, spiritually, and mentally for past "sins". For this reason Bane becomes a more formidable foe than any Batman has ever faced before. Bane has nothing to lose. My favorite line is when Bane stares at Batman and calmly tells him "When Gotham is ashes...you have my permission to die." The Dark Knight Rises has a couple surprises up its sleeve that after seeing it a couple times I realized were a little predictable, but this is a movie that is worth seeing multiple times. It is a great ending to one of the best, if not THE best comic book adaptations ever done.

Prometheus

In this self-proclaimed prequel to the famous Alien series, researcher Elizabeth Shaw is on a mission, along with her boyfriend and several other scientists, to find the origin of humanity. Their exploits take them to a cave with drawings of beings similar to our own species that seem to have come from another world. Four years pass after finding the cave, and Shaw finds herself aboard a ship bound for a distant moon in the hopes that it will lead to the discovery of humanity's origins. What they find on the moon is more than any of them could ever have imagined.

Prometheus is an extremely well-done, and superbly acted film from the mind of Ridley Scott who created the original Alien series. As a normal science fiction film it's good, but it's strength comes from the fact that it's not just a normal sci-fi action flick, but rather it's a deep, almost philosophical film. It dares to ask the questions of where did we come from and who are our creators. I found it interesting that Shaw is portrayed as a Christian throughout the film, and when asked whether her findings shook her faith she denies it. Instead it strengthens her faith, and she ponders as to who made our creators. If you're looking for a film that breaks away from the mold of mindless sci-fi action flick then this one's for you. You definitely do not want to miss this one.

Expendables 2

The mercenary crew known as The Expendables are back in an all new adventure, this time trying to stop a French bad dude named Vilain (original I know) from stealing a stash of Soviet plutonium in the hopes of selling it to the highest bidder.

I'll say one thing about Expendables 2, it definitely does NOT take itself seriously, and that's what makes this one so fun. I'm surprised I liked it because I hated the first Expendables. I felt the first one had a bad story, bad writing, and really bad acting. Expendables 2 isn't much better, but it's a step up from the original. This time it actually had lines that reminds viewers of previous films that Stallone, Arnold, Van Damme, and even Chuck Norris did in the 80's. Chuck Norris' entrance makes it worth the price of admission alone. In the end, this sequel is an engaging, hilarious thrill ride that fans of Stallone, Norris, Schwarzenneger and other 80's action heroes will love.

The Bourne Legacy

In this fourth installment of the Bourne franchise, Aaron Cross is an agent from an organization similar to Treadstone and Jason Bourne. The difference between him and Bourne is that his senses are heightened by a couple of drugs the U.S. government makes him take. Aaron is the kind of agent that more often than not shoots first and then asks questions later. He's loyal to his country and to the agency. That loyalty is soon betrayed when Bourne comes back on the grid and wreaks havoc on everyone involved with Treadstone and the similar agencies. Now Cross is on the run from the very country he swore to protect and serve.

I was excited when it was announced that there was going to be a fourth Bourne film. My excitement quickly faded when I heard that Matt Damon was not actually returning as Bourne. It didn't make sense to title it The Bourne Legacy when Jason Bourne wasn't even going to be in the film. The result is a good action flick that lovers of the original series will not be completely disappointed in. It has its flaws, such as some background information that doesn't make sense. The thing that has set apart this series from other secret agent series' such as the James Bond series is the realistic action. This unfortunately is Legacy's downfall. There is a chase sequence on motorcycles that started out well, but then turned into a "how the heck is that possible" moment. Overall it was a good installment, but it was the worst of the series. I'd recommend it for fans of the series, but don't expect it to be at the level of the original trilogy.

Battleship

(Very) loosely based off of the popular board game, Battleship finds Lt. Alex Hopper joining the U.S. Navy (at the urging of his older brother) to finally own up to his childish behavior and to ultimately do something important with his life. Of course, Alex rarely listens and constantly gets into trouble with his superiors. It's not until his girlfriend urges him to ask her father for permission to marry her that he starts wondering, but doesn't actually take any action to, if it's time to grow up. Before he can ask her father, however, some debris from space crash lands near Hawaii where Hopper is stationed and he must head out to investigate. What follows is the ultimate battle for survival as the Navy fights off a group of lethal aliens.

I can sum up Battleship in one word: STUPID. Stuff like this makes me wonder who seriously thought making a movie out of a board game was a good idea. It's one of those movies that was unintentionally funny at the absurdity of it. Not to mention that it is a complete ripoff of the Transformer trilogy and Independence Day except for the fact that this time around it's just aliens and and not a robotic alien race. The only good thing going for it was that it was better than Wrath of the Titans, but that's not a big compliment. If you have some time to kill and you're looking for a comedy then look no further. I garauntee you will be laughing at this one. Otherwise skip it.