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Ted, a review by Dragonfire

Ted



I went to see this Friday and loved it.  It is hilarious..truly one of the funniest movies I've seen in a long time.  The theater was packed..more than I had thought it would be. 

The story is interesting and on the original side with having a wish make a teddy bear come to life.  That is covered well in the first few minutes of the movie, with a narration by Patrick Stewart.  By the time the credits are over, the movie has jumped forward and John is 35 and has a few issues to deal with..some of which are tied to the fact that he still lives with his teddy bear.  The movie is very funny, though there is a more serious bit that turns up later on.  That part doesn't blend as well with the funny stuff, and it does mess up the pacing just a tad.  The movie is very entertaining overall though.  The humor is a bit rude at times and some people will be offended.  Anyone that has issues with Family Guy should probably skip this one since the same type of humor is used.  The movie just goes further with the rudeness than the series can.  Some of what is done is definitely twisted...but it is funny.  The movie deserves the R rating and is definitely not a movie for families.  Ted may be a cute looking talking teddy bear, but he drinks, smokes pot, swears like a sailor, and picks up hookers.  He is light years away from Winnie the Pooh.

The characters are very entertaining and John and Ted are great together.  Lori, John's girlfriend, starts off being very understanding about Ted, but then that changes a bit.  Donny is sort of a fan of Ted's..and really creepy. 

This is a really good, entertaining, and funny movie that is worth watching.  It isn't for everyone and the movie will probably offend some people.  It is not a kid movie, but unfortunately, people have ignored the ratings and been taking little kids too it.



I did manage to get a review posted on Epinions - before the cable went down after the nasty storm.

Ted


(From Ted on July 4th, 2012)

Gorgo, a review by GSyren

Title	Gorgo
Year	1961
Director	Eugene Lourie
Stars	Bill Travers, William Sylvester
Overview
My thoughts	It's not many European made films that have shown European cities devastated by giant monsters. The only other one that comes to mind is the Danish film Reptilicus. While I have a guilty-pleasures-fondness for Reptilicus, I have to admit that it cannot hold a candle to Gorgo. The films is obviously inspired by Godzilla. The miniature destruction of London is as good as anything Godzilla did to Tokyo. Sometimes the filmmakers try a little to hard and add superimposed debris that somewhat detracts from the reality of the scene rather than adds to it, but I can overlook that. The fact that the "monsters" win in the end is also nice. Today this would all have been made using CGI, but there is something special about "real" physical effects and monsters that CGI just can't duplicate. I'm not saying that it's better or worse, just - different. And I like it. The younger generation proably won't like it as much, I guess.
Rating

(From Reviews and ramblings by Gunnar on March 26th, 2013)

"Battlestar Galactica" Marathon (1978-2009), a review by DJ Doena

Synopsis: "Commander, there's a signal coming over Fleet Comm Line Alpha!" There's another surviving Battlestar, the Pegasus, under the command of Commander Cain, a living legend. Now they have two Battlestars and Cain wants to use them to attack the outer capital of the Cylon Empire. But Adama can't leave the fleet defenceless, he has to care for more than just revenge. And Baltar has now the force of three Basestars and wants to wipe out the colonial fleet once and for all.

My Opinion: Great start to a great two-parter. I always liked this Cain. At times he seems morally ambiguous but he has his heart at the right place and he takes a stand for what he believes is the right thing to do. I also liked that they made some new special effects shot for this and the following episode, especially when it comes to shooting down Cylon Raiders. And I loved Baltar's face when he saw that second Battlestar!


Synopsis: Thanks to the Pegasus Baltar's attack failed miserably but the Galactica was heavily damaged. But the fleet is running out of fuel. They have to attack the Cylon capital and their fuel depots. Cain devises a plan where the Pegasus diverts the Basestars and the Galactica attacks Gomorray and secures the fuel. One Battlestar against three Basestars. This will be a battle to be remembered.

My Opinion: Cain is a great contrast to Adama. I always felt that Adama was more a member of the Quorum of Twelve and the leader of the fleet than a military commander. Cain is a warrior to the core. The greater the battle, the greater the victory. I really loved it when he charged that two Basestars (Baltar has of course retreated). And I loved it how Baltar shooed his Raiders from the Pegasus to Gomorray and then back to his Basestar and how he (inadvertently) made them totally useless.

Synopsis: The Cylons have developed a new tactic. Instead of engaging the colonial Vipers in a dogfight and getting shot down they simply load their Raiders with explosives and ram the Galactica. And it's working. The Galactica sustains heavy damages. One landing pod is burning uncontrollably, Adama is badly hurt and needs surgery and Boxey, Athena, Boomer and others are caught between burning sections of the ship. Every attempt to extinguish the fires is failing until there's only one solution left: To blow holes in the outer hull and let the vacuum of space do the job.

My Opinion: This episode and the two previous ones were re-cut and released in european theatres as Mission Galactica: The Cylon Attack. I thought this was a good, dramatic episode that took its time to develop the characters a bit more - especially Boomer's and the doctor's character. I also liked Starbuck's and Apollo's "space walk". It may not have looked perfect but I thought it looked fairly decent and not as if they were hanging on ropes or something.

Synopsis: A patrol has gone lost when they were scouting a nearby sector. Suddenly there were bright lights and an eerie sound and they simply vanished. Starbuck, Apollo and Sheba (Cain's daughter) land on a planet in that sector and discover a crashed ship - and what seems to be a survivor. He asks to be brought to the fleet and they agree. But once in the fleet he tries to become more: The fleet's leader to Earth and he has very persuasive powers. He even promises them their arch enemy: Baltar.

My Opinion: Patrick McNee played a great Iblis. He has the charisma and when he threatens someone he is deadly serious. It became clear very quickly what Iblis was supposed to be, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Synopsis: As promised, Baltar is now a prisoner in the fleet and Count Iblis gains more power every day. But since he has come aboard the spheres of bright light are always in and around the fleet and they seem connected to Iblis. Starbuck, Apollo and his father are amongst the few who don't fall for Iblis's charming personality. And Baltar has found out where he heard Iblis's voice before: From the voice synthesizer of the Cylon Imperious Leader.

My Opinion: Funny thing is that Patrick McNee actually voices the Imperious Leader. But luckily neither is Iblis the devil in the literal sense nor are these light beings angels. They are just older than the Humans. One could compare it to the First Ones in Babylon 5. I liked the conclusion that even these higher beings have to follow the rules and that not even Iblis can break them. But I have to say that I didn't like Anne Lockhart's (Sheba) acting in the "ship of light". Her mourning didn't convince me. Granted the acting in this entire show isn't the best, but that scene stood out for me.

(From "Battlestar Galactica" Marathon (1978-2009) on March 28th, 2009)