Mr. A's review of.....Attack The Block

The Story:

Sam, an overworked nurse from Lambeth, is having a horrible night. She's far from her family, her boyfriend is halfway across the globe doing Red Cross work, and she just got mugged by five young boys.

Moses isn't having a good time either. Not having a solid home life he's turned to selling weed, shoplifting, and most recently, mugging overworked nurses from Lambeth.

But when their mugging is thwarted by what seems to be some kind of monkey, Moses and his crew take their anger out on the beast and viciously murder it.

Soon they realize that it wasn't a monkey at all, it's an alien, a weird furry alien. They also realize that maybe...just maybe...killing it wasn't such a hot idea.

With an impending alien invasion knocking at their door (literally) and a vengeful drug dealer not far behind, Moses and his crew must now team-up with Sam and the other tenants in their housing project in order to survive.

Why are these aliens hellbent on killing everyone Moses has come in contact with? Why won't anyone believe them? Will they make it out alive or will they end up alien snacks?

Look out, people, the aliens are here...and they're gonna attack the block.

The Review:

First things first, the casting is what really makes this film. Moses and the rest of the punk kids really make this movie worth watching. Each one of them brings a level of reality to the story that, in my opinion, older actors couldn't portray.

The second thing that makes this film awesome is the humor. While there isn't as much of it as I would have liked, it does break up the horror moments and allows you a bit of down time before the next jump into the freaky alien action.

Speaking of which, the alien designs are probably one of the best I've seen in a long time. I don't know if they were short of budget or if they really intended them to look they way they do, but it works for the film and it makes them all the scarier.

And speaking of scared, there wasn't as many jumpy moments in the film as you would think and the gore was pretty minimal, but I'm not a fan of those sort of things anyway so there was just enough for my taste.

I found the soundtrack a bit lacking, but it did help the humor along a few times so I suppose it can be forgiven.

And finally, even though this is Joe Cornish's first time in the director's chair, he obviously knows what he's doing.

The Verdict:

Action, aliens, humor, and horror, Attack The Block should not be missed. However, if you don't make any of those words I just gave you, please steer clear and go see something else (30 Minutes Or Less maybe?).

I personally will be seeing this film again in theaters...let's just hope this time there won't be any annoying couple talking throughout the film...you know who you are.

8/10

Jaa mata,

Mr. A

(Executive producer)

Mr. A's review of.........Fright Night

The Story:

Former nerd Charlie Brewster actually has a pretty good high school life. He's got a girlfriend who loves him, he lives next door to a stripper, he's got a mom who gives him his space, and besides his motorcycle breaking down in the middle of the road, things couldn't get any better.

Well, until people start disappearing that is.

Suddenly Charlie's life is thrown into a tailspin. His girlfriend is on the verge of breaking up with him, his mom is flirting with the new neighbor, and his former childhood friend "Evil" Ed Lee, after trying to convince Charlie that his neighbor Jerry is a vampire, ends up missing, too.

But that can't be right. Jerry? A vampire?

Sadly it is and Charlie's entire life is now just a race against time to stop Jerry and save his family.

Turning to Las Vegas magician and self-proclaimed vampire expert Peter Vincent, Charlie must devise a plan to put Jerry down and save the people in his town from being turning into blood-sucking freaks.

Can he do it or will he end up one of the walking dead himself?

Welcome, everyone. Welcome.....to Fright Night!

The Review:

So right off the bat the soundtrack is awesome, including personal favorites like "Pumped Up Kicks" from Foster the People and "99 Problems" by Hugo.

The acting is awesome with most memorable performance by former Doctor Who star David Tennant. As soon as he appears on screen the film gets better. On the down side his character wasn't featured as much as I would have hoped.

Anton Yelchin holds his own as the reluctant hero Charlie Brewster, I must say that he is now one of my favorite actors.

Unfortunately I found Colin Farrel's portrayal of Jerry to be a bit underwhelming. Not to say he didn't get the job done or that he wasn't a good villain, there was just something missing.

The pacing was a little off for the first half of the film, but it does even out around the half-way mark.

The effects are a bit shoddy when it comes to one particular chase scene and during the final battle, but the rest of it is quite good.

The direction wasn't really anything new, but it worked for the film.

The Verdict:

With more kick-assery and humor than the original, Fright Night delivers on quite a few levels.

There really isn't much gore, however there is quite a lot of blood so please don't take your kids to see this, this isn't some sparkly BS like Twilight.

There are a few frightening moments, but any adult should be able to handle them.

As a last bit of advice I suggest you don't see it in 3-D, I've been told by many people that it really wasn't worth the extra $5.

Now get off your ass and go see Fright Night!

7/10

Jaa mata,

Mr. A

(Executive producer, vampire hunter)

Mr. A's review of........30 Minutes or Less

The Story

Nick, a lowly pizza delivery boy, is having a pretty rough time. He sucks at his job, he just got into a massive fight with his best friend Chet, and to top it off the love of his life (who happens to be Chet's sister) is moving out of state to take a high paying job at a hotel chain.

Dwayne isn't having such a hot time either. He hasn't done a whole lot with his life, his lottery-winner father treats him like crap, and the only friend he has in the world is Travis who lives in a junk yard and makes bombs as a hobby.

However, unlike Nick, Dwayne has a plan...

Hiring and out-of-town hit-man, Dwayne plans on having his father killed so he can get his inheritance and open a tanning salon (which would be a front for a brothel BTW). Not having the money to pay for the hit, Dwayne and Travis kidnap our poor hero Nick, strap a bomb to his chest, and force him to rob the local branch of a woefully under-protected bank.

With nothing to lose but his life, Nick sets out to get the cash, get the girl, and to hopefully get his life back on track.

Think he can do it? Don't worry, he does this for a living (inside joke).

The Review

So the casting was perfect. Jesse Eisenberg plays the incredibly pathetic Nick perfectly, but you do see a bit of his character from Zombieland bleed though so I guess that he's just really good at playing pathetic characters.

Nick Swardson does a great job as Travis, being stupidly funny at one moment and playing a great straight-man the next.

And a special shout-out to Aziz Ansari for letting his humor shine through as Chet ("'Do you think Lisa would go out with me?' You mean that Lisa? Hello no, she's laughing in your face! No texting in my class!")

The directing wasn't anything to praise, but it wasn't horrible either.

The pacing was sort of slow in the beginning, but once the bomb vest goes on it does pick up quite a bit and there's enough humor to cover whatever down-time there is in the film.

The action beats were pretty far apart, but they kicked a lot of ass when they did finally come around. In all honesty, if there wasn't any comedy in this film it would actually make a pretty good action-drama.

The Verdict

Funny, entertaining, and with just enough naked boobies, 30 Minutes or Less should not be missed. If you like action, comedy, or any combination of those words you should go see it in theaters at least once (I plan on seeing it twice).

But please, please, please, don't take your kids to see it...

8/10

Jaa mata,

Mr. A

Mr. A's Review of.....Green Lantern

The Story

Hal Jordan is--

--Okay, I honestly can't talk about this film. Find out why below...

The Review

This film is the biggest piece of crap I've ever seen. This makes Superman Returns look like Wrath of Kahn! First off, the CGI was HORRIBLE. The costumes looked like they were photoshopped onto the actors, Oa looked like it was a reject city from Lord of the Rings, and the Guardians looked liked wrinkled Smurfs.

Now let's talk about the acting. Ryan Reynolds plays Hal Jordan like he's playing Tony Stark mixed with Han Solo. He's more suited to play either Guy Gardner or Kyle Rayner.

The plot was so hastily thrown together and the pacing was so damn choppy that NONE of the film makes any sense around the half-way mark.

The Verdict

DO NOT SEE THIS FILM!!!

Seriously, it's a waste of time.

-5/10

OMG, I honestly can't say anything else about this movie....

Jaa mata,

Mr. A (Green Lantern, sector 2814)

Totoro's Review Of... "Stardust"

As promised, here is my review of the 2007 film "Stardust"... So, let's get this party started!

CAUTION! SPOILERS AHEAD!

The Story
The nondescript English village of Wall holds a wonderful secret. The village's namesake stone wall near the town (and specifically, its large hole) is actually the gateway to the magical Kingdom of Stormhold. While enjoying a romantic evening with his friend/beloved Victoria (Sienna Miller), Tristan Thorne (Charlie Cox) sees a star fall from the sky and land in the forest behind the wall. Tristan then promises to bring the star back for Victoria as a way of showing his affection. Little does Tristan knows that this one act will set off a series of events that will forever change his life.

The Review
As this movie is an adaptation, there are some divergences from the original source material (Neil Gaiman's 1998 novel). But, as I had not read the book prior to seeing the film, I cannot explicitly comment on any major changes on that front.

But I will comment first on the acting in this film. Charlie Cox does a fine job playing the dramatic lead, but Michelle Pfeiffer turns in an a deliciously evil performance as the oldest of three witch sisters on a quest for immortality. The rest of the cast, Claire Danes, Mark Strong, David Kelly, Kate Magowan and Ricky Gervais also turn in strong performances. Fantasy stalwart Ian McKellan puts in a vocal cameo as the film's narrator while Peter O'Toole also appears as the dying King of Stormhold. But, my customary "Scene Stealer Award" goes to Robert De Niro for his performance as Captain Shakespeare.

After my initial viewing, I was surprised to discover that this film was directed by Matthew Vaughn (who had previously directed Layer Cake, and would go on to direct both Kick-Ass and the forthcoming X-Men: First Class). He, along with editor Jon Harris (Snatch., 127 Hours) kept the film at a frenetic yet considered pace.

The Verdict
Upon the advice of Jupiter & Mr. A, I was told to see this film. After delaying for almost two months, I finally set aside some time to watch it, and I found myself regretting that I had not watched it sooner. While I don't view this film on the same level as The Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter sagas, it still remains a good fantasy film nonetheless.

7.5/10

Mahalo,
~Totoro (Creator, Executive Producer)

A Special Announcement From The Otaku 5-0 Show

Aloha everybody...

It regrets me to inform you, but due to various issues, this season of The Otaku 5-0 Show's audio podcast has been brought to an abrupt end.

I cannot disclose specific details, but on behalf of the staff I would like to thank YOU - our audience - for your continued support of our endeavors thus far. While we will not be producing any podcast episodes for the foreseeable future, we will continue to post feature articles (including my forthcoming review of, "Stardust"). So please stay tuned!

Mahalo,
~Totoro (Creator, Executive Producer)

Audio Podcast: Season 6, Episode 12

Episode 104
3 episodes before Totoro's departure

Aloha everybody!

Last week I formally announced that I would be stepping down as Executive Producer of The Otaku 5-0 Show at the end of our current season. As such, we have decided to make some changes to our podcast format in an effort to return to the light-hearted, stream-of-consciousness style that dominated our earlier episodes. From now on, we will put more focus on discussing specific entertainment-related issues instead of on weekly topics.

For this first revised episode, Maka and Jam re-join the panel (having sufficiently recovered from Kawaii-kon), along with our mutual friend Caitlin, who will be known as Alacorn.

So sit back, relax and enjoy the (rediscovered) fruit of our labors!

Mahalo,
~Totoro (Creator, Executive Producer)

WARNING! Portions of this podcast contain mature language and adult content. Listener discretion is advised!



Click here to download episode.

Show Notes
The Otaku 5-0 Show's Audio Podcast: Episode 6.12

Recording Date: May 9, 2011
Running Time: 71 minutes

Panelists
Totoro (Creator, Executive Producer)
Mr. A (Executive Producer)
Maka (Contributor)
Jam (Contributor)
Peeps (Contributor)
Alacorn (Guest Contributor)

Format
1. Lead-in (Peeps)

2. Random Chatter (Doctor Who, Kawaii-kon, Summer Movies)

3. What If? (All)

4. Ask Mr. 8-Ball

4. Lead-out (Totoro)

Musical Notes
-Opening Theme: Kefka's Theme" from Final Fantasy VI
-Interstitial Clips "I'll Do It Right!" from Naruto, "Eyecatch" from Full Metal Panic!, "Pre-Title" from His & Her Circumstances, "Frog's Theme" from Chrono Trigger
-Ending Theme: Breach of Contract from Ah! My Goddess

Coming Soon...
Our next audio podcast episode!

Feedback is always accepted here at The Otaku 5-0 Show. Please send us an e-mail to us at otaku50podcast@gmail.com OR post a comment on this blog!