This is it. All the planning has led to this episode: The rescue of New Caprica.
A note to first time BSG watchers; these aren’t the reviews for you. I plan to write about the show with the ending in mind. If you haven’t seen the show, you will be spoiled on stuff that happens at the end. You’ve been warned.
“It the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine.” – REM
That line perfectly sums up Lenny Nero (Ralph Fiennes), the hero of Kathryn Bigelow’s “Strange Days” (1995).
The title is not an exaggeration; the setting is the last few days of 1999 in a world gone mad; Los Angeles is essentially a police state, but since the whole world is a police state, no one really seems to notice.
After resovling last week’s cliffhanger, everyone’s getting ready for the Cylon/human showdown; Adama has gathered his soldiers, the civilians are ready to move, all they need to do is wait for the signal.
A note to first time BSG watchers; these aren’t the reviews for you. I plan to write about the show with the ending in mind. If you haven’t seen the show, you will be spoiled on stuff that happens at the end. You’ve been warned.
Man, do I love Steven Soderbergh’s “Ocean’s Eleven.”
It’s a layered but satisfying heist movie, a buddy movie, an easy revenge picture, and an all-around good time. Sure, you’re rooting for the criminals, but that’s what movies are for.
I wish I was reviewing that movie instead.
“Ocean’s Thirteen” is a lot like the first movie; a casino owner, Willy Bank (Al Pacino, mugging it up as usual), has wronged Reuben Tishkoff (Elliot Gould), the moneybags of the trilogy, nearly killing him, so the band, led by Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt), gets back together to ruin Bank’s newest casino and rob of him of millions.
To do that, they’ll have to recruit some new team members, bypass an impossible-to-fool security system, pull off several long-cons, and get out with no traces of their presence (you know, like in every heist movie).
Not a bad setup, but a big part of what made the first story so fun was getting to meet the characters for the first time. Here, we are thrust into the action midstream, and while I normally applaud that sort of thing, here it just feels overdone.
That’s basically my problem with “Thirteen” (and to be fair, “Ocean’s Twelve” too). We’ve seen what came before, we’ve watched them pull off the impossible, and by now we can spot all the tricks coming.
It’s such a waste too; the cast is still solid, but there’s no more fun to be had. The effortless charm of “Eleven” has evaporated, and all we’re left with is a film that’s trying (and failing) to recapture the glory days of the first movie.
Let’s hope there’s not an “Ocean’s Fourteen” around the corner.
“Ocean’s Thirteen” (2007)
Written by Brian Koppelman and David Levien
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Starring: George Clooney (Danny Ocean)
Brad Pitt (Rusty Ryan)
Al Pacino (Willy Bank)
Reuben Tishkoff (Elliot Gould)
What a mixed bag of a movie.
On one hand, you get the inspired choices for Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes and Jude Law as Dr. Watson, and Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler, an exceptional criminal and Sherlock’s lady love.
But, on the other hand, you get a weak script, action-movie trappings, and a lot of silly red herrings.
It’s been six months since the Cylons took over New Caprica; Anders, Tyrol and Tigh are heading up the resistance, while Roslin and Tory try to keep the civilians safe. The Adama boys are trying to put together a squadron capable of taking on the Cylons but are experiencing morale and staffing problems. It’s a bleak, but not without hope.
A note to first time BSG watchers; these aren’t the reviews for you. I plan to write about the show with the ending in mind. If you haven’t seen the show, you will be spoiled on stuff that happens at the end. You’ve been warned.
Another month, another double feature (albeit an unintentional one).
Today, we have Nir Bergman’s “Broken Wings” (2002) and Lawrence Kasdan’s “Body Heat” (1981).
Now really, these films have nothing in common. I watched them in the same day, they both start with “B,” but beyond that, nada. The former is about a family falling apart, the latter a suspense filled thriller of seduction and murder.
But hear me out.
In between seasons two and three, viewers get a glimpse of life in the New Caprican resistance, with Chief Tyrol, Col. Tigh and Jean Barolay in charge. Expect lots of tough calls and collateral damage.
A note to first time BSG watchers; these aren’t the reviews for you. I plan to write about the show with the ending in mind. If you haven’t seen the show, you will be spoiled on stuff that happens at the end. You’ve been warned.