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Inspector Gadget , a review by Dragonfire

Inspector Gadget



Wowser! Disney's 'Inspector Gadget' turbocharges to life in a wild and quriky adventure comedy with a thousand moving parts!

During a daring rescue attempt, John Brown (Matthew Broderick), a naive and clueless security guard, experiences the wrath of the evil Dr. Claw (Rupert Everett) and is left clinging to life. Jumping at the chance to put her robotics expertise to the test, the brilliant Dr. Brenda Bradford (Joely Fisher) transforms him into Inspector Gadget - the ultimate crime-fighting tool! And Gadget is going to need every techno-trick up his cyber-sleeve to defeat the ruthless Claw - before Claw reduces our hero to spare parts and wreaks havoc on the world!

Non-stop action, seamless special effects and a gazillion gizmos make 'Inspector Gadget' a hilarious techno-thrill ride the whole family will watch over and over.

My Thoughts

I've seen the cartoon of Inspector Gadget, though it has been a while.  From what I remember, the cartoon wasn't as dark as the movie is.  There is a murder within the first few minutes of the movie and some other questionable things for a family friendly movie.  The villain, Sanford Scolex, is effective as a villain.  John, the man who becomes Inspector Gadget, is nice enough, but he seems a bit dumber than the version of the character in the cartoon.  The plot is sort of interesting, though it isn't that strong.  Most of what happens is silly or downright stupid.  Some of the silly things work all right, though others are just too silly.  I'm thinking the movie would have worked better if it had been animated instead of live action.  Even with the plot issues, I did think the movie managed to be entertaining overall.

There really isn't any mystery to what is going on since it is clear right from the beginning that Scolex is up to no good.  It would have been nice if there had been an attempt to add some mystery to what was going on.  That probably would have made the movie more entertaining.  There is violence in a few scenes, most of which is rather mild.  John is interested in Brenda, though not much tied to that comes out in the movie, so there isn't any romance either.  The characters are fine, though none of them are developed enough to be really interesting.  The cast does ok with what they have to work with.



I did get a review posted at Epinions if anyone is interested.

Inspector Gadget

(From Inspector Gadget on September 5th, 2010)

A Perfect Murder, a review by Dragonfire

A Perfect Murder Wall Street titan Steven Taylor seems like a devoted husband. He isn't. Beautiful Emily Bradford Taylor seems like a faithful wife. She isn't. And when Steven hires Emily's lover to kill her, it seems like A Perfect Murder. It isn't. In fact, little is what seems in this sleek thriller. Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow and Viggo Mortensen star in A Perfect Murder, inspired by the play Dial M for Murder, filmed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1954. Fans of that classic will be in for a lot of surprises. So will Steven. At each unexpected twist in his "perfect" plot, he improvises brilliantly. But can he always stay one step ahead of the next jolt? My Thoughts After watching Dial M for Murder, I decided to watch this one again.  I first saw this one several years ago, long before I saw any of Dial M for Murder.  The plot is very much like that the of earlier movie, which makes sense since they are both based on the same play.  Some of what happens is predictable, but there are some changes to what is going on that add some surprises to the movie.  The story has been updated a bit and it isn't confined to the apartment where Steven and Emily live, though the most important part still happens there.  The plan is mostly the same, with a few little tweaks.  I do think there is a good amount of suspense to the movie and think it works well as an entertaining thriller.  There is a bit more violence to what happens in this version of the story. There are more details about the relationship between Emily and David shared and they are still having their affair when Steven puts his plan in motion.  The sex scenes are rather mild, basically just showing them rolling around in bed together while managing not to show much skin.  It is very clear from the first time that Emily and Steven are together that their marriage is strained.  Gwyneth Paltrow and Michael Douglas don't make the most believable married couple..something just seems off about that.  The relationship between Gwyneth and Viggo's character is more believable.    The DVD has an alternate ending that is slightly different.  I think I like the one used in the movie better.  The other extra just has information that has to be read about the decision to make a new version of the story. Overall, I really enjoy this movie and think it is worth seeing.  I think it works as a different version of Dial M for Murder well. I did post a review on Epinions back in 2004. A Perfect Murder

(From A Perfect Murder on June 29th, 2010)

My PILOT Marathon, a review by Rich

THE SHIELD - SEASON ONE - PILOT



Detective Vic Mackey leads an aggressive Anti-Gang unit called the Strike Team. They are ramping up their control in the Farmington district, while Captain David Aceveda is working to eliminate corruption in the precinct. Aceveda and Detective Terry Crowley team-up to bring down the Strike Team. Meanwhile, detectives, Dutch Wagenbach and Claudette Wyms, investigate a murder wherein a young girl was kidnapped by the victim's addict husband.

This episode introduces Detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis), old-style hardline cop with the most unorthodox crime fighting practices. This pilot illustrates how graphic, violent and gritty the series would probably become.
With the multiple cases happening across the pilot, a snitch on Mackey in his strike team, the murder of a young mother & trading of her missing 8 year-old daughter, drug busts, hookers, barbaric interviews, office politics, and pranks on Dutch, you can't fault this for entertainment.
The ending - superb, shan't spoil it for anyone, but I never saw it coming.
Cast deliver strong performaces, realistic feel, POV camera angles and a powerful script delivers a pilot that will force me to return and watch the full series.
 

(From My PILOT Marathon on May 13th, 2008)