Category: Uncategorized

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton

Week of October 28, 2019

Terminator: Dark Fate
Rated R for violence throughout, language and brief nudity
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 67% at time of writing
In Theaters
The beauty of the Terminator franchise is that with time travel, none of the storylines are set in stone, creating the freedom to build new stories whenever and wherever they want. This new edition, produced by James Cameron and directed by Tim Miller (Deadpool) starts off where T2 left off, beginning with the revelation that a new terminator kills young John Connor in Mexico right after the events of that story. Now decades later, Sarah Connor travels around Mexico killing new terminators as they arise, when she comes across an enhanced human (Mackenzie Davis) protecting a new person (Natalia Reyes), who plays some important part in the future of mankind, from a seemingly invincible terminator called a Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna). There is a lot to like in this new adventure, including huge set pieces and non-stop action, as well as the return of Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger. It also has a great sense of humor and social/political relevance as it dives into our country’s immigration issues as the heroes try to cross the border into the U.S. If you can turn your brain off long enough, you will really enjoy the fun and the creativity on display. What bothered me was all of the things that didn’t make sense, like an aging, bearded terminator robot, the lack of tools necessary to kill even an older model robot, and the improvised third act at the dam which they would like to make you think they planned on all along. Still, the special effects were as fantastic as you would think they would be and you can have a good time watching it. It blows my mind that they would have waited until now to release the film, as this would have made the perfect summer movie in a summer almost completely lacking in them. B

David Crosby: Remember My Name
Rated R for language, drug material and brief nudity
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 92%
Available on Disc and Streaming
This documentary follows the life of famed rock star David Crosby of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, tracing his beginnings in the industry through his struggles with addiction, depression and self-destructive behaviors. Through his sometimes uncomfortable interviews here, the film gives an honest third-party viewpoint while at the same time allowing Crosby to provide his self-examination of the many previous decades. Being that the music was before my time, I only had the songs in my head and not the image of people and events behind those songs, so I personally found the film to be a wonderful Rock history lesson. But the film also works as a psychological investigation into the life of a very interesting man with a sordid past and a great story to tell. B+

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton
Week of October 21, 2019
 
The Lion King
Rated PG for sequences of violence and peril, and some thematic elements
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 53%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Disney continues its trend here of recreating its most beloved animated movies into live-action extravaganzas with this creative vision from director John Favreau (The Jungle Book, Iron Man).  Unlike some of Disney’s recent releases such as Dumbo and Aladdin, most of the original here has been left alone in regard to story and song, with just a freshening up by the amazingly talented voice cast including Beyonce Knowles, Donald Glover, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Seth Rogen, with the iconic James Earl Jones returning as the voice of Mufasa.  Personally I can’t understand why the critics panned this one so harshly as I found myself to be thoroughly entertained.  I would have liked the film to have been more closely in tune with the stage production as the added songs there are a fantastic enhancement of the original material, but I’m perfectly happy with this version.  It will never replace the original, but it is a beautifully made facsimile of it.  B+  
 
Stuber
Rated R for violence and language throughout, some sexual references and brief graphic nudity
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 42%
Available on Disc and Streaming
This Hollywood retread stars the amazingly funny Kumail Nanjiani as a struggling Uber driver who happens to pick up a cop (Dave Bautista) who drags him along on a violent and dangerous mission.  While there is some good comedy, the suspension of disbelief is really taxing here and the material seems like a step down for Nanjiani, who I would expect to see in much higher-end projects, instead of low-brow and brainless action comedy like this which we’ve seen more times than we are comfortable with.  He tries desperately hard to elevate the film, but ultimately this is just a tired old idea with some new clothes that don’t fit well.  C-
 
The Art of Self-Defense
Rated R for violence, sexual content, graphic nudity and language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 83%
Available on Disc and Streaming
This ultra-quirky project stars Jesse Eisenberg as a helpless man whose weakness leaves him the victim of a major crime when a motorcycle gang senselessly beats him within an inch of his life.  In an effort to gain confidence and be able to protect himself from future violent occurrences, he begins to take karate lessons from a peculiar little studio with a group of eclectic students and strange rules.  If you enjoy films by such writers as Yorgos Lanthimos and Charlie Kaufmann, this one is right up your alley.  The world our characters live in looks familiar at first, but you quickly come to the realization that they are in a completely foreign universe as situations escalate.  In this case, I really enjoyed the creativity and nuance on display, and while the film’s dark turn is disturbing and weird, I found it interesting to say the least.  I do wonder if there is deeper meaning to the film as I merely took it at surface level, so there might be future viewings involved should I get in the mood.  B

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton

Week of October 7, 2019

Joker
Rated R for strong bloody violence, disturbing behavior, language and brief sexual images
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 69%
In Theaters
From Todd Phillips, the mind that brought us The Hangover and Old School, comes this psychological drama about the origin of the The Joker, sans Batman, sort of. Set in what looks like the 70s in Gotham, Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) is a disturbed young man, suffering from we now know as pseudobulbar affect, a disease that causes its victims episodes of uncontrollable laughter and crying. But after a depressing series of life events and a moment of criminal revenge on a train, he takes on a new persona, creating a chaotic chain reaction through Gotham. At first this film really started to get to me, and I found it to be quite fascinating. I have to admit that it is extremely well-made, but I was quite unhappy with the twists leading to the ending. I would have really liked a frightening villain backstory, but we have here is simply a frightening movie. Personally, films like this make me ill. I would put it in with movies like Taxi Driver and Natural Born Killers, and not only would I rather not see them, I would have preferred they were never made in the first place. I will admit that I was feeling paranoia due to thoughts about the killings in Colorado during Dark Knight, but sitting in the theater watching, I couldn’t help but feel vulnerable and scared due to environmental factors such as people laughing during scenes that just weren’t funny and folks leaving the theater for extended lengths, obviously now just to use the restroom. I became hyper aware of everything around me and I left the theater feeling sick and far from entertained. What should have been a fascinating and riveting movie-going experience, turned into two hours of my life I would not like to repeat. My biggest fear is that films like this set people off, making them cold to the illness and the violence. There was a moment in the film where I thought they might deliver more of a Batman film to us, but the end result turned out to just be a sick, depraved journey I would have rather not taken. F

Midsommar
Rated R for disturbing ritualistic violence and grisly images, strong sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use and language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 83%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Hot on the heels from his hit horror flick Hereditary, Ari Aster brings us yet another disturbing tale about a group of friends who travel to Sweden to experience the summer ceremonies and rituals of a rural village. Once there, they find themselves both disturbed and intrigued by the events they experience. While the entire film is extremely unsettling, the story is just twisted enough to make you want to be an observer and thankful not to be a participant. I never found myself scared per se, but I was creeped-out effectively. What really struck was the authenticity of the production and the stellar performances by the convincing and brave cast of actors. This one is certainly not for everyone, but this type of horror is much easier to enjoy than the slashers that still pervade theaters. B

Annabelle Comes Home
Rated R for horror violence and terror
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 65%
Available on Disc and Streaming
I have to admit that I felt a little betrayed by this new film in the Annabelle franchise, mostly because they sold it as a Conjuring film rather than a hybrid. I do love the young actress McKenna Grace, and she does a fine job of carrying the picture about the scariest doll in the universe, but I wanted something more and certainly something deeper. The film takes place as the Warren’s daughter is left home with babysitters, only to get in trouble when one of the girls allows Annabelle out of her protective display case. The relatively young cast does a good enough job and there are a couple of creepy moments, but the authenticity of the first two Conjuring films just doesn’t exist here, and the film suffers from it. In the end it just turns into another Annabelle film, devoid of the promises it gave leading up to it. C+

Anna and the Apocalypse
Rated R for zombie violence and gore, language, and some sexual material
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 78%
Available on Disc and Streaming
In the attempt to create yet another smash up of genres, the team behind this Scottish indie decided on a teenage-zombie-comedy-musical.  Surprisingly, the songs and singers are all high quality, making this experience far better than you would think possible.  Sure the blood and gore get old quickly, but the overall creativity on display wins the day.  I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this started popping up in small stage live productions once the home audience begins to catch on to it.  B-

Popcorn Perspective with Danny Minton

Week of September 30, 2019

Crawl
Rated R for bloody creature violence, and brief language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 82%
Available on Disc and Streaming
What seems like a simple plot of Jaws with Alligators turns out to be a fun and rather scary adventure when a young girl (Kaya Scodelario) attempts to rescue her father (Barry Pepper) during a hurricane in rural Florida, only to find that they are trapped by giant Alligators with a taste for humans. At just less than 90 minutes, its like a roller coaster of a film, filmed with plenty of claustrophobia, a decent script, great creature effects and surprisingly good acting by the girl and her father, who share the majority of the screen time with the gators. My chief complaint is that they made it just gory enough to hit an R rating and this would have been so much better, and would have picked up a much larger audience, at PG-13. B

Yesterday
Rated PG-13 for suggestive content and language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 63%
Available on Disc and Streaming
This great little feel-good pic combines one of my favorite directors (Danny Boyle) with one of my favorite screenwriters (Richard Curtis) and the music of the greatest band in rock history – the Beatles. After a struggling singer-songwriter gets hit by a bus during a blackout, he awakens to discover that the Beatles never existed – and it is now his job to introduce the world to their music. The movie turns out to not just be a love letter to the Fab Four, but also a smart romantic comedy with an incredibly creative plot. I’m not sure why the lower Rotten Tomatoes score exists, but after three viewings now, I am still a great big fan. A

Child’s Play
Rated R for bloody horror violence, and language throughout
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 63%
Available on Disc and Streaming
This reboot of the famous 80’s horror franchise follows the escapades of a possessed, murderous doll, powered by modern, interactive technology. Sharing similarities with the plot of AI, the doll is there to take care of its owner, even if that means to destroy all threats, and here Chucky does so in horrific and violent ways. While not as fun or funny as the 1988 original film, the movie does something interesting in that it tries to be relevant, and to a degree it succeeds. It’s not terrifically scary, but it turns out to be better than I thought it could be thanks to this novel approach. Overall, it should make for a good Halloween sleepover flick. B-

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton

Week of September 16, 2019

Ad Astra
Rated PG-13 for some violence and bloody images, and for brief strong language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 83%
In Theaters
In the near future, space exploration and the search for intelligent life has become of paramount importance. After a series of dangerous, life-threatening power surges, the U.S. military sends astronaut Roy McBride (Brad Pitt) to send a message to his father (Tommy Lee Jones), who is on a space station near Neptune, when they fear that his father’s mission is responsible for the damage on Earth. From the very beginning, you are treated to some really incredible special effects and sci-fi visions never before seen on film. In fact, the project comes across as tremendously ambitious, with many memorable moments and huge set pieces. So for the pure audacity of the film, I’d have to recommend it. The story is also very strong with a script that keeps you on your toes. Where I would have liked to have seen a change is in the cast. Pitt and Jones are both very, very good – in the right roles. But neither of them excel in emotional parts, and while the characters are both rather coldly written, more emotional fuel is needed here to get us to where we need to go. My eyes and ears appreciated and enjoyed what they were taking in, but my heart was not attached at all. When I think of similar films over the last couple of decades, like Interstellar, Contact and Gravity, that emotional pull made all the difference in the overall quality of the film. Unfortunately, this one turns out to be mostly candy for the senses. B

Dark Phoenix
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action including some gunplay, disturbing images, and brief strong language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 23%
Available on Disc and Streaming
In what is said to be the last X-Men film in its current form, the X-Men head to space for a rescue mission when Jean Grey is hit by a dark cosmic force that slowly corrupts her after she makes it back to the planet. As the group starts to unravel, Jean spirals out of control, allowing an evil Alien presence to try to weaponize her powers. Sure we’ve had a couple mediocre X-Men films, but for the most part the franchise has been a dependable series in regards to action, story and overall entertainment. But this one just goes nowhere and not only is it too dark – it’s also too boring, creating an atmosphere of apathy for its characters, rather than the empathy we are so used to. It’s a real shame that the filmmakers couldn’t have figured out a better way to tell this story – or maybe even scrapped it and gone for a different narrative altogether. C-

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton

Week of September 9, 2019

Aladdin
Rated PG for some action/peril
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 57%
Available on Disc and Streaming
This year has been an excellent year for movie musicals, and this rehash of the original Aladdin from Disney is no exception. Part of what made this project so immensely difficult lies in replacing the irreplaceable Robin Williams as the genie. But in a genius move, Disney brought in an almost equally iconic actor in Will Smith to fill his pointy shoes and even though the rest of the cast is largely unknown, you’d hardly recognize that due to the superb job Smith does here. Sure the film isn’t entirely original and can even be a bit cheesy at times, but Sherlock Holmes director Guy Ritchie brings a frenetic energy to the movie that makes it play like the true action film it was meant to be, while the production team creates a magical world for the story to thrive. And in spite of its predictability (who hasn’t seen the original a hundred times before), the film still manages to surprise several times, putting me in my happy place while watching it. A-

John Wick 3
Rated R for pervasive strong violence, and some language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 90%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Keanu Reeves has had a huge career revival with this strange little franchise about an assassin who is wanted by every other assassin on the planet after seeking revenge for the death of his dog. In this third installment, a price of $14 million has been put on his head and he crosses the planet to avoid getting whacked by the world’s greatest killers. Once again, the film is a fun exercise in extreme violence with countless creative ways to die popping up every few seconds. The story continues to be weird, and I’m not so sure we needed Halle Berry here (although she’s always welcome to the party), but by the end you feel lucky to be alive, since practically everyone else didn’t make it. I was kind of hoping that that this would be the last film in a trilogy, going out in a blaze of glory with some nice closure thrown in, but – spoiler – the movie does not end the series and there is more to come for sure. B

Booksmart
Rated R for strong sexual content and language throughout, drug use and drinking – all involving teens
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 97%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Every few years we get a great end of school party movie that doesn’t just revel in debauchery, but rather really explores the life of the modern teenager who is about to move on to their next major life-step. For me, the first film to explore this was American Pie. It gave me a view of the high school I wanted to be at and the party I would have loved to have attended to cap off my public school experience. Of course my own life was much more tame and would have made for a rather lousy motion picture – which is why we watch these types of films. So here comes Booksmart (20 years after American Pie) where we get to experience the night before graduation, as lived by two bold and ambitious, yet secretly insecure girls who figure out that their dedication to school could have been filled with parties and fun instead of brown-nosing and books. With a great script and a very fun cast, the movie shows us a night that I wouldn’t necessarily want to be part of, but at least one that is extremely fun to watch. B

The Dead Don’t Die
Rated R for zombie violence/gore, and for language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 54%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Famed indie auteur Jim Jarmusch gives us his take on a zombie film as he and his A-list friends take on the walking dead. In this American small town, Bill Murray and Adam Driver are cops who quickly discover that their city is getting overrun by zombies, while the town’s residents, including Tilda Swinton, Steve Buscemi, Danny Glover and many other well-known figures fight off the invading horde. What starts off as a clever take on the genre ends up as a rather artsy self-aware morality tale that provides some twisted laughs, but lacks the content to provide a memorable film-going experience. C+

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton

Week of September 2, 2019

It Chapter Two
Rated R for disturbing content and bloody images throughout, pervasive language, and some crude sexual material
In Theaters
Based on Stephen King’s iconic novel and following up on 2017’s Chapter One, Chapter Two takes place 27 years later, once again in the town of Derry, Maine, as the evil clown Pennywise returns to once again wreak havoc. The group of friends from Chapter One, who lovingly call themselves the Losers Club, make good on their vow to return to Derry should Pennywise come back. Translating Stephen King stories for the big screen has plagued Hollywood for years, and while it has been done successfully several times, there have been a far greater amount of failures. But after the rousing success of the first part, there seemed to be great promise in this new installment. One of the reasons for the great success in Chapter One was that they made the movie about the friendship of the children, much like we have seen in Stranger Things, or even Stand By Me and Goonies from years ago. This turned out to be a brilliant choice, creating characters we could become deeply invested in. So now, 27 years later, the kids are still very present (this time in important flashback sequences) and the adults manage to bring us that same feeling of camaraderie and nostalgia. Of course it helps here to have some of the biggest actors in Hollywood as the leads, including James McAvoy, Jessica Chastain and Bill Hader, who all bring not only their amazing talent, but also a strong credibility to the project. Of course the film would be nothing without a great scary story, and this one literally kills it. The movie is both thrilling and absolutely horrifying, making you an absolutely nervous wreck as you follow their journey to take down the clown. I’ve had several folks ask me “is it better than the first one?” My answer is that the two chapters need be taken in as a whole. The films need each other in order to succeed, and this is done in beautiful fashion here. A

Ma
Rated R for violent/disturbing material, language throughout, sexual content, and for teen drug and alcohol use
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 54%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Oscar winner Octavia Spencer plays a lonely middle-aged women living in small town America who tries to win over teenage friends by buying them alcohol and allowing them to use her house to “safely” party. But once the kids start to separate from her, she goes a little off the deep end, revealing hidden secrets and a frightening agenda. I really wanted to like this film, but while Spencer is great, the whole thing just doesn’t come together like it should. The overarching plot is a nice touch, but the logistics to get it there could have been delivered so much smoother. By the end, it simply lacks the goods necessary to create the kind of horror/thriller they set out to make. C

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton

Week of August 26, 2019

Rocketman
Rated R for language throughout, some drug use and sexual content
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 89%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Right on the heels of Bohemian Rhapsody which chronicled the life and exploits of Freddie Mercury is this biopic fantasy about the life of the legendary Elton John, one of the most successful rock singers in history. Beginning with his childhood, the movie uses the star’s music in full-out singing-and-dancing-in-the-streets musical format, rather than making it a more organic rock drama. This risk pays off big as John’s life was and is most certainly theatrical, and a Broadway-style display just makes sense. Overall, the film works on so many levels. Foremost is the tremendous talent of the actors, namely Taron Egerton who perfectly personifies the icon. But also Jamie Bell as Bernie Taupin, Richard Madden as the heartless lover and record producer, and Bryce Dallas Howard as John’s insensitive mother all make for an extraordinary ensemble. The production values are also off the charts, providing for a dreamy quality that almost puts you in a trance while absorbing. But the crafty way the songs are placed ultimately brings it all together in an unforgettable form that makes you want to relive it again right after you finish the first viewing. A+

Godzilla: King of Monsters
Rated PG-13 for sequences of monster action violence and destruction, and for some language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 41%
Available on Disc and Streaming
In the hopes of pulling off what Disney has done with the Avengers, Universal here is attempting to create a huge overarching platform for their giant monsters with this third film in the franchise (I’m including the recent King Kong as it will soon play out in the series). In this newest installment, the world’s biggest monsters are coming out of hiding, and humankind must rely on the powers of Godzilla to save mankind, while Mothra, Rodan, King Ghidorah and many others head to a giant showdown to decide who really will be king. What is impressive is that they could assemble this massive cast including Vera Farming, Ken Watanabe, Sally Hawkins and Kyle Chandler. Unfortunately they each phone in their parts as if they are happy to take the check but would rather not have their name in the credits. And while the special effects are good enough for the film, the story is just a pathetic attempt to build something bigger through a sloppy plot line that the filmmakers hope folks don’t try to overanalyze. Don’t get me wrong – I sometimes like a mindless summer movie, but this one just takes an enormous step too far. D+

The Secret Life of Pets 2
Rated PG for some action and rude humor
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 60%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Furthering the adventures of the dogs, cats and rabbit from the first Secret
Life, this new journey finds Max (now voiced by Patton Oswald after the fall of Louis CK) and Duke (Eric Stonestreet) as their family has added a human child followed by a trip to the countryside, giving them a new dose of anxiety. Meanwhile, Snowball the bunny (Kevin Hart) attempts to free a white tiger from a circus. Honestly, the plot is so thin that the whole project appears to be nothing more than a cash grab, hoping that kids remember enough about the characters to care about what kind of messes they might get in again. While the first film came out only a short time ago, I remembered next to nothing and I’m going to assume this new one will be as forgettable as the first. C-

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton

Week of August 19, 2019

Brightburn
Rated R for horror violence/bloody images, and language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 57%
Available on Disc and Streaming
This take on the super hero genre essentially asks the question: what if Superman were a monster? The story is set on a rural farm where a farmer and his wife (David Denman and Elizabeth Banks) long for a child and their wish is granted when a spacecraft carrying a baby crashes on their property. But as a pre-teen, the child starts to show evil tendencies and when he becomes aware of his powers, he uses them for horrible acts of violence and revenge against people he perceives have wronged or bullied him. Honestly, the premise itself is very interesting and there could have been a potential hit here, and possibly a franchise. But rather than steer the story in a serviceable direction, they formed here more of a B-movie horror flick, relying on violence and senseless gore rather than tension and suspense. I got bored with it very quickly and couldn’t wait for the 90 minute timer to run out. C-

A Dog’s Journey
Rated PG for thematic content, some peril and rude humor
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 49%
Available on Disc and Streaming
This sequel to the successful-enough “A Dog’s Purpose” finds an older version of Dennis Quaid who tasks his dog to protect his toddler granddaughter when the dog is on his deathbed. So the dog, voiced by Josh Gad each time, through various lives and breeds, follows the young girl around, giving her comfort and providing safety throughout her life. As a film critic, I found the movie to be over-the-top and an extreme mixture of cheese and manipulation. As a dog-lover, I found the film to be a well-made fantasy of what we would all love our dogs to really be like. It truly represents what makes our canine friends so special. And this time around, due to a much stronger narrative and better use of its reincarnation vehicle, the film at least feels fresher and more interesting than the first movie. B-

Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton
Week of August 13, 2019

Avengers: Endgame
Rated PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and some language
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94%
Available on Disc and Streaming
Picking up where Avengers: Infinity War left off, a few years have passed since half of the world’s population disappeared and now the remaining Avengers, led by Tony Stark, use stupid science to work out the time travel necessary to make things like they once were and find a redo for their battle to save their friends, and the rest of mankind. Endgame turned into quite the juggernaut at the box office, raking in $857 million in the US (now number 2 of all time domestically), and $2.7 billion world-wide, making it the top grossing film of all time. What impresses me most about this franchise is Disney’s commitment to a huge storyline and all kinds of new heroes and interrelated tales. It was an ambitious plan that paid off more than anyone could have dreamed. And while I liked this last chapter of this major storyline, I didn’t love it as much as some of the previous parts. My biggest difficulty with it was how flimsy the plot devices were and how indulgent the battle sequence was at the end, giving each hero their money shot, not thinking if any of it made sense. Ultimately, this made the movie way longer than it should have been, rolling in at just over 3 hours. That being said, the film was surprisingly entertaining, giving us such pleasures as fat Thor and smart Hulk. I found myself laughing way more than I thought I could given the severity of the state of their world. If the box office is any indication, this release will build even further on Disney’s riches, but at least fans get their money’s worth in the process. B+

Shadow
Unrated – but equivalent to an R for violence
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 95%
Available on Disc and Streaming
In Mandarin with English Subtitles
From legendary Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou comes this martial arts epic about ancient kingdoms at war and the price that must be paid to recapture what is thought to be theirs. Quite honestly – there is a long and convoluted plot, and my synopsis is completely inadequate here, but since I got lost and still enjoyed it, I figured I’d leave it at that. You won’t really be watching this movie for its story, but rather its remarkable vision and spectacular battle sequences, which is what Zhang Yimou is best known for anyway. Once you get through the soap opera-like drama and into the meat of the story, the action will have you on the edge of your seat, waiting to see what crazy stuff will happen next. While Yimou’s films usually include a rich and beautiful score (it doesn’t get much better than the score for Hero by Tan Dun), the lackluster score here is sadly composed by Asian composer Loudboy, which does not do anything to enhance the tapestry of the project. B