movie reviews by PvtCaboose91

Surpassing even the most optimistic of expectations in 1977, Star Wars became a phenomenon, earning a mint at the box office and bringing in millions of additional dollars in merchandising. Producing a sequel to such a much-loved motion picture would be daunting for any filmmaker, yet, like its predecessor, Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back managed to transcend all expectations with ostensibly effortless aplomb. Released in 1980, The Empire Strikes Back succeeds because it's not just a simple, light-hearted victory lap for George Lucas and his crew - it's a bold, dark sequel which closes on an uncertain note and leaves more questions than answers. It isn't just a terrific sequel on its own terms, but also one of the best follow-ups in feature film history, and it's arguably superior to the motion picture which spawned it. Boasting terrific special effects and the confident directorial hand of the late great Irvin Kershner (RoboCop 2), The Empire Strikes Back is a masterpiece that still endures in the 21st Century.

Three years after the successful assault on the Death Star, the Rebel Alliance have constructed a new base in secret on the ice planet of Hoth, hidden from the Galactic Empire. But when probe droids alert Imperial forces about the location of the rebels, Lord Darth Vader (David Prowse) spearheads an invasion, forcing an evacuation of Hoth. While Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) is instructed by the spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness) to travel to the Dagobah system to seek out Jedi instructor Yoda (Frank Oz) for training, Han Solo (Harrison Ford) seeks safety elsewhere, travelling with Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) and trusty protocol droids C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) and R2-D2 (Kenny Baker). But Vader summons multiple bounty hunters, including the notorious Boba Fett (Jeremy Bulloch), to hunt down Solo's ship.

Although George Lucas wrote and directed 1977's A New Hope, he wisely enlisted outside help for this instalment, with screenwriters Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan working from Lucas' story outline. Due to this, The Empire Strikes Back irons out the little imperfections of the original film, particularly in regards to dialogue. Furthermore, whereas A New Hope was on the simplistic side, this sequel ups the ante and expands the franchise's scope, ditching the light popcorn serial mentality in favour of a darker tone, with its daring ending demonstrating that the good guys do not always win. This is also a far denser tale, even adding a layer of romance by exploring the sexual tension between Han and Leia that was palpable in A New Hope. Furthermore, The Empire Strikes Back expands upon the Jedi religion by introducing Yoda, a wise old Jedi Master who once instructed Obi-Wan. Yoda was brought to life by Jim Henson's legendary creature shop, who created an astonishingly expressive puppet, while Muppets veteran Frank Oz voiced and performed the role to perfection.

A New Hope was produced for a meagre sum, and barely any executives at 20th Century Fox had any faith in the production. But the extraordinary box office performance led to a generous budget boost for The Empire Strikes Back, and as a result this is a more polished, visually striking endeavour. The crew did not have to take as many shortcuts this time, with production design and special effects looking as slick and impressive as ever. Even by 2015 standards, The Empire Strikes Back looks extraordinary, with its reliance on practical effects and location shooting affording the film a tangible, realistic visual aesthetic, while the proficient sound design gives vivid life to this sci-fi fantasy world. Moreover, the spectacular action sequences are also hugely exciting, from the riveting Hoth battle to an exhilarating asteroid field chase, as well as the climactic lightsaber duel between Vader and Luke that doesn't disappoint in the slightest. What's especially notable about the Luke/Vader conflict is that it’s not all about fancy fight choreography, as the duel actually means something and is brimming with emotion and drama. Consequently, it's one of the greatest sequences in the Star Wars saga. Furthermore, The Empire Strikes Back is given an additional boost in the form of John Williams' enrapturing original score. Williams creates an array of effective themes beyond the insanely memorable Star Wars title music, perfectly accompanying the spectacular visuals. It's hard to imagine Star Wars being as exhilarating as it is without the iconic soundtrack.

The acting here is a bit more refined, with Hamill in particular seeming more comfortable in the role of Luke Skywalker. Since The Empire Strikes Back is a darker movie, the characters are given more depth than before, and Hamill's performance during the emotionally devastating climax is really remarkable. Meanwhile, Ford remains effortlessly cool, embodying the kind of edgy, badass hero that all kids aspire to be. The movie also introduces Billy Dee Williams, who's another bright spot playing Han's old friend Lando. But the best newcomer here is fan favourite Boba Fett. The design of Fett's trademark armour is iconic, while his badass demeanour and imposing voice solidifies his status as a memorable character. Fett is perfectly voiced by Jason Wingreen; we will ignore that his voice was replaced with Temuera Morrison for the DVD release in 2004, with the change being carried over to the movie's Blu-ray debut. Admittedly, though, this is the only overly vexing alteration that Lucas has applied to the movie, with the minor digital touch-ups actually serving to bolster the already impressive visuals.

Everything in The Empire Strikes Back simply works, from the flawless action sequences to the incredible visuals and memorable characters, while its thematic undercurrents elevate it above more run-of-the-mill blockbusters. As with A New Hope, some content does border on the cheesy side, yet it's sold with so much sincerity that it's not bothersome at all. This is a superlative movie; the darkest, deepest, most mature and most thoughtful instalment in the Star Wars franchise to date. It's a rare type of classic blockbuster that can be adored by film fans and critics alike without needing to rely on nostalgia, as it confidently holds up years later. If anything, the movie is more breathtaking in 2015 simply because of how convincing the visual effects still look, despite being executed in 1980.

Star Wars is so much more than just a movie - it's a cinematic experience; an event picture with the ability to appeal to adults, teenagers and children in equal measure. It's an influential pop culture phenomenon which has become omnipresent over the last four decades, leading to video games, comic books, toy lines, animated television shows, and every type of merchandise you can possibly imagine. When it was released in May 1977, there had never been a motion picture quite like Star Wars before. Sure, there had been goofy science fiction flicks, but George Lucas and his team created a believable, successfully straight-faced spectacle, executing an involving character-driven story with state-of-the-art special effects. And in 2015, this first Star Wars movie - which was later re-titled Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope - has lost none of its potency; it's still an insanely enjoyable space opera fantasy epic, imbued with breathtaking action scenes and top-flight technical specs. Adults will appreciate the compelling storytelling, while kids will be enraptured by the film's colourful special effects.

Civil war has broken out across the galaxy, and the Galactic Empire have finished constructing a heavily-armoured space station known as the Death Star, which is powerful enough to destroy entire planets. The Rebel Alliance manage to steal the plans for the Death Star, but Imperial forces led by Lord Darth Vader (David Prowse) board a rebel spaceship, capturing Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) who manages hides the Death Star plans in small droid R2-D2 (Kenny Baker), along with a desperate message for a certain Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness). R2-D2 and fellow protocol droid C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) escape the captured ship, landing on the desert planet Tatooine. The droids wind up in the possession of young farmer Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), who dreams of a more exciting life. Finding Leia's message, Luke sets out to find Obi-Wan, but the Empire is also on the planet searching for the droids. Luke and Obi-Wan enlist the help of space pirate Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and his Wookie associate Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) to help rescue the princess.

Many different iterations of Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope exist, with Lucas having altered the film for its 1997 Special Edition re-release, its 2004 DVD debut, and its 2011 Blu-ray release. To avoid confusion, I will concentrate on the original 1977 theatrical cut for this review, which is the preferred edition of myself and the majority of the world's Star Wars fans. Furthermore, even though the film was not initially called A New Hope, I will utilise its newer title in reference to the movie during this review. Got it? Good. We can proceed. 

The central storyline of A New Hope is simple, to be sure, but this is perhaps one of the movie's primary charms. Whereas comparable sci-fi films like 1979's Star Trek: The Motion Picture get bogged down in chatter and big ideas, A New Hope is, at its core, an engaging Hero's Journey-esque narrative, with background details to enhance the story without harming pace or taking too much focus away from Luke. This first Star Wars movie continues to hold up because it doesn't forsake emotion for action. Whereas the Star Wars prequels amount to self-indulgent special effects demo reels with little in the way of heart or emotion, A New Hope takes its time to develop the roster of heroes, which amplifies the excitement of the action scenes since it's easy to care when the characters are put in danger. A sequel was never a sure thing during filming (what an amusing notion, looking back), thus A New Hope is a self-contained story, and does a superlative job of introducing the world and characters of Star Wars better than any of its sequels or prequels.

A New Hope demonstrates the old adage of "art through adversity." Lucas did not have a blank cheque to fulfil his vision, consulting his talented collaborators to create an achievable vision with the limited funds at their disposal and within the inherent restrictions of the era. It's the resourcefulness of the crew behind Star Wars which gives the picture its magic, as it's amazing what they were able to achieve considering the less-than-ideal conditions. Perhaps the greatest unsung hero of Star Wars is producer Gary Kurtz, who had previously worked with Lucas on American Graffiti and who was hugely influential as Star Wars took shape. Basically, Kurtz overturned many of Lucas' bad ideas and even coached the actors, but he gets barely any credit; people still mistakenly believe that the success of Star Wars is all attributable to Lucas.

The difference between A New Hope and more recent sci-fi movies is substantial. Produced before the advent of digital effects and computer-generated imagery, this first Star Wars is reliant on vast sets, location photography, skilful matte paintings, models, and other methods of special effects that were an absolute breakthrough at the time. And with the movie having been lensed on 35mm film stock, it carries a natural grain structure which makes the enterprise look tangible and real. Moreover, the fact that the props and sets aren't glossy or perfectly polished adds to the movie, as it gives the environment a properly lived-in feel. A New Hope is a movie that you can still watch and enjoy in 2015 without needing to cut the special effects any slack, because the grand illusion still stands. Convincing make-up and prosthetics were used to create the aliens, while the space battles were the result of a lot of hard work using miniatures and model ships. Even though the set-piece are not as dynamic as more recent action-adventures, it hardly matters; if anything, its modesty is precisely why the movie still works.

As stated previously, A New Hope's theatrical cut is the best way to watch the movie. Though some of the tactful digital touch-ups do work, the additional CGI creatures are unnecessary (the Jabba the Hutt scene is dreadful, with dated '90s CGI taking you out of the movie), and there are numerous other alterations which only serve to undermine the visuals and the story. Hell, even the colour grading has changed, making laser bolts look pink at times.

Star Wars is not exactly an actor's movie, but performances across the board are nevertheless effective, particularly Harrison Ford who's an impeccable Han Solo. The cast also boasts some veteran performers, with Alec Guinness and Peter Cushing playing vital roles in the proceedings, affording the production a degree of welcome gravitas. And then there's Lord Darth Vader, who was performed by David Prowse while James Earl Jones provided the unforgettably authoritative voice. Everything about Vader is memorable, from the design of his badass outfit to Earl Jones' ideal vocal performance, making him one of the great all-time villains of cinema. Furthermore, A New Hope benefits from John Williams' iconic score. There are not many themes as instantly recognisable as the Star Wars title music, as it's perfectly majestic and instantly evokes exhilaration. Williams' compositions across the board are note-perfect, amplifying the drama and excitement.

Admittedly, Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope is not a perfect film - it can be nit-picked in a few areas, and the dialogue can be clunky and stilted. Nevertheless, it remains hugely satisfying and well-made, especially in the wake of the abominable prequel trilogy which lost sight of the factors which made A New Hope such a great movie.

Let's get the obvious out of the way first: Insidious: Chapter 3 is not as good as the first two Insidious movies, which is disappointing to a certain extent. However, it still confidently rises above the usual low standard for horror movies in this day and age (it's better than Ouija and Annabelle), and in this case, that's just good enough. This second sequel to 2010's Insidious sees usual franchise director James Wan reverting to a producer role, leaving long-time collaborator Leigh Whannell to fill the director's chair (Wan was preoccupied with Furious 7). Whannell, who co-wrote the previous Insidious movies, is not as competent as his predecessor, but Insidious: Chapter 3 is by no means a bust, serving up an interesting prequel angle and still containing a handful of worthwhile horror sequences.

Still devastated over the loss of her mother, 17-year-old Quinn (Stefanie Scott) is attempting to get into acting school, while her overworked father Sean (Dermot Mulroney) struggles to keep the family together. Wanting to make contact with her late parent, Quinn turns to noted psychic medium Elise (Lin Shaye), who has renounced her practise due to previous experiences that utterly drained her. Nevertheless, Elise agrees to help, but whilst communicating with the other side, a sinister entity latches itself onto Quinn. The demon begins to wreak havoc on Quinn's life, leaving her bedridden after a car accident. Powerless to fight the evil, Quinn and Sean turn to Elise, desperate for help, while unproven internet ghost hunters Specs (Leigh Whannell) and Tucker (Angus Sampson) also help out as best they can.

Chapter 3 is not as scary as the first two movies, and it's certainly nowhere near as terrifying as Wan's surprise hit The Conjuring. Whannell was visibly finding his feet as a director here, with a heap of jump scares as opposed to the more carefully-crafted scenes of terror that Wan can now pull off in his sleep. Indeed, the issue here is the lack of anticipation; Wan's movies have the ability to keep us on the edge of out seat for minutes at a time, waiting for something to happen, but Chapter 3 comes up short in this respect. With that said, however, there are some spooky moments that do work, and some of the jump scares do their job reasonably well. The film also introduces some unsettling new demons, with the primary antagonist looking sickly and gross, a nice change of pace from the "Lipstick Demon" or the old lady from the previous pictures. Insidious: Chapter 3 looks slick and refined, with the expectedly modest budget ($10 million in this case) being put to great use. The visuals are bolstered by the typically creepy score courtesy of franchise veteran Joseph Bishara, though the trademark Insidious theme is not used as much as expected.

Being a prequel, Chapter 3 does strive to serve as an origin story of sorts, finding Elise already haunted by the presence of the old lady who eventually kills her. It also traces Elise's working relationship with Specs and Tucker (even though the webisodes for the second movie already revealed how they met). The prequel angle is in no way novel, and now seems customary for any prominent horror franchise, yet it’s still interesting to see, in spite of some overly cutesy prequel touches. What's interesting about Insidious: Chapter 3 is the surprising emotional heft and thematic depth to the narrative, with Sean struggling to move on after the tragedy of losing his wife, straining his relationship with his children. The plot is put in motion by Quinn, who only wants psychic intervention to get closure with her late mother, and the climax is unexpectedly powerful due to this. It's certainly a different dynamic compared to the first two Insidious pictures.

Shaye has always been a pleasure to watch, and Insidious: Chapter 3 gives her a welcomely larger role in the proceedings. As ever, Shaye is note-perfect here as Elise, oozing gravitas and charm, and she's also totally believable as a psychic medium. Equally impressive is newcomer Stefanie Scott, who's easy to connect and sympathise with. Whannell deliberately chose a real teenager as opposed to a twenty-something like most Hollywood movies, and it's a nice touch that enhances the production. The rest of the ensemble submit solid work as well, with the likes of Mulroney, Sampson and director Whannell all hitting their marks. James Wan even has a cameo, which is a nice touch.

Insidious: Chapter 3 has its problems, with a screenplay that occasionally lacks focus, and with a shortage of memorably scary sequences, but it's a decent effort on the whole, and it will be interesting to see if Whannell continues his path of spooky filmmaking after carving out a career as a writer and actor. Too many horror franchises feel compelled to move beyond a trilogy, with the likes of Saw (another Wan/Whannell series) and Paranormal Activity sullied by endless sequels. Although more Insidious films may be enticing simply because this is better-than-average horror franchise, this is the ideal time to close the book on the series and call it quits, especially with the law of diminishing returns already in effect.

It has now been six years since the abortion that was McG's Terminator Salvation was met with substandard box office and critical mauling, posing a challenge for any filmmaker bold enough to pursue further sequels. There were not many logical places for the series to go, thus 2015's Terminator Genisys functions as both a sequel and a reboot, avoiding another future war movie by forcing a story set before Judgment Day to return the series to its roots. Genisys is barely a movie at all - it's a concept of a movie; a vague mishmash of half-baked ideas and potentially interesting scenes strung together not to tell a worthwhile story, but to fill out a balance sheet. Indeed, it solely exists to plot a workable new path for the franchise, paving the way for more sequels to allow Skydance to keep beating this dead horse for all that it's worth until the rights revert back to James Cameron in 2019. And with a soft PG-13 rating in place forbidding the visceral delights of the first two Terminator movies, Genisys feels safe and generic.

In the apocalyptic future war, human resistance leader John Connor (Jason Clarke) spearheads an attack on Skynet headquarters with help from right hand man Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney), in the process delivering a devastating blow that may finally end the war against the machines. But it is discovered that a T-800 Terminator has been sent back in time to 1984 to kill John's mother, Sarah (Emilia Clarke), to ensure that that he is never born. Kyle volunteers to serve as Sarah's protector, but upon arrival in 1984, he discovers that Sarah is already aware of the situation, locked in warrior mode and able to protect herself, aided by her lifelong Terminator guardian “Pops” (Arnold Schwarzenegger). Aiming to prevent Judgment Day, Sarah and Pops have created a time machine of their own, planning to travel forward in time to 1997 to stop Skynet before it goes live. But apparently the timeline has been altered and Kyle has memories of a future which hasn't happened yet, and they need to travel to 2017 instead. And on it goes.

Every time an R-rated franchise is continued with a PG-13 instalment, the press strategies are identical, with the studio, actors, and even the blind fan-boys wanting us to believe that PG-13 is no big deal, because it will (somehow) still be violent, and what matters the most is the script and story. Funnily enough, Arnie actually satirised such blatant lies in Last Action Hero back in 1994, with his character explaining that “In this movie we only kill 48 people. In the last one we killed 119. But we make up for it with a good story, emotions, depth, dimensions.” Big surprise: Genisys's PG-13 rating is a much bigger deal than we have been led to believe. Perhaps it could have worked if it did have a smart screenplay, but Genisys is a dumb action film, lacking the smarts and heart of the original Terminator. It's a numbing succession of brainless action sequences, and without the visceral punch of an R rating, there is not much to see here.

Genisys is not just a Terminator reboot, but a DC Comics-esque multiverse reboot. It's a poor excuse for the filmmakers to create a grab-bag of every single element that people liked from the previous movies; Sarah is already a badass, there's a T-1000 (played by Byung-hun Lee), there's another de-aged Arnold T-800 (with improved CGI), and they've recreated the main plot thrust of T2, with the heroes trying to destroy Skynet before Judgment Day erupts. Genisys also copycats another notable aspect of T2, with a relationship between Sarah and "Pops." A more appropriate title for the movie would be Terminator FanService. But then again, this is a PG-13 movie, so they cannot even do the fan service thing properly. Also, turning Arnie's ruthless T-800 into a sidekick for a wise-ass kid was a bad idea back in 1990, and having him as a gentle father figure is just as ill-advised here. I miss Arnie the hardcore killer.

Genisys is easy to follow, but examining the narrative too closely is a bad idea, with paradoxes and unanswered questions. The question of who sent Pops back in time is a real head-scratcher, and the script politely refuses to answer the query, with the T-800 explaining that his files were erased. But the biggest head-scratcher is the need for Sarah and Pops to build a time machine to go forward in time. Time-travel exists in the Terminator franchise in order for people and cyborgs to go back in time to change things, which is understandable, but why use it to travel forward? Time goes forwards in the first fucking place! Instead of jumping ahead thirty years, Sarah, Kyle and Pops could have spent that time improving their tactics and arsenal, keeping an eye on the Skynet situation, remaining one step ahead, and could have even destroyed Skynet whilst it was still in beta. But instead, they go for the ticking clock of Terminator 3 (hey look, another idea stolen from a past movie), even though it's incredibly idiotic that they aim to show up with limited time on their side, and just wing it.

The marketing campaign for Genisys is one of the poorest in recent memory, with the bargain basement posters, and the trailers which spoiled all of the movie's surprises. The big “twist” is that John is now the villain. But rather than the villain being a Terminator who looks like John, it actually is John Connor whose genetics were tampered with, and now he's Skynet's guardian to safeguard his own future existence. Frankly, this concept is unforgivable. John has always been mankind's saviour in the future war, but now it's all for naught. Perhaps this decision was made to sidestep the need for a sex scene between Kyle and Sarah, because PG-13. There are some interesting thematic undercurrents in the screenplay by Laeta Kalogridis and executive producer Patrick Lussier - particularly in regards to our growing reliance on screens in a modern world dominated by Google, Microsoft and Apple; and with Sarah standing up for her right to choose a mate rather than letting her supposed fate dictate that she must climb into bed with Kyle - but the movie is more interested in prolonged action scenes and terrible humour. Heavens me, the attempts at comedy are woeful, especially a hideous running joke that Pops cannot smile properly despite repeated attempts. Pops even makes a comment about Kyle's endowment, while another scene involves Pops getting a mugshot while the Cops theme plays in the background. Holy shit.

At least there is colour to the movie. One of Terminator Castration's many, many flaws is its desaturated cinematography which rendered it monotonous and visually drab. With Alan Taylor (Thor: The Dark World) at the helm, Genisys retains a far brighter colour scheme, and to its credit it is more watchable than its immediate predecessor. However, the action scenes are a mixed bag. The 1984 sequences are surprisingly proficient, but the bigger set-pieces are boring, even with the mammoth budget. Genisys goes far too over-the-top, sapping humanity and intensity from the material. A certain bus crash is incredibly overdone and should have left people seriously injured or dead, but Kyle and Sarah, who were inside, walk away without a scratch on them. Even the special effects are a mixed bag; the T-1000 looks worse than it did in 1990, the flashy CG-riddled climax looks like vomit, and so on. The young Arnold does look impressive initially, but when he begins fighting Pops, he suddenly looks phoney.

Terminator Genisys does have one benefit to elevate it above Suckvation: Arnie's participation. The Austrian Oak is getting old, but he's still a welcome addition to the cast, keeping the flick watchable even during its worst patches. Unfortunately, the rest of the cast (not to mention the film itself) fail to serve him. Emilia Clarke is hopelessly out of her depth here, exuding minimal screen presence, coming across as a very passionless Sarah Connor. She's nothing compared to the powerhouse that was Linda Hamilton in T2. I do not hate Jai Courtney, but he makes so little of an impression here, and it's painful to watch him attempt to fill Michael Biehn's formidable shoes. Jason Clarke (no relation to Emilia) does what he can as John Connor, but he's just not a believable badass - he looks more like an office worker. The only bright spot (apart from Arnie) is J.K. Simmons as a detective who's caught up in the battle. And it's heartbreaking to see former Doctor Who star Matt Smith caught up in this garbage.

Can this please be it for the Terminator franchise? We as viewers have suffered enough, and even though Genisys is an improvement over Terminator Salvation, we are still far away from the groundbreaking brilliance of Cameron's 1984 masterpiece which started it all. Characters are uninteresting, there's no tension or sense of stakes, the script struggles with a needlessly convoluted narrative, and attempts at comedy are painful. The seeds of a half-decent movie are here, but the potential could not be found in the hands of this creative team. It has been a week since I viewed Genisys, and I am hard-pressed to remember anything I liked about it. Anyone seeking a glossy, expensive studio blockbuster may enjoy Genisys, but give me a violent, bone-crunching '80s sci-fi action-thriller like 1984's The Terminator over this guff any day of the week.