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Zoom: Academy for Superheroes, a review by Rogmeister

Zoom: Academy for Superheroes
Cast: Tim Allen, Courteney Cox, Chevy Chase, Rip Torn

I wasn't quite sure what to make of this but I wanted to get me a real "Z" movie I could include in this year's A-Z marathon...and so I chose this one!  What else would I choose?  Zombie High?  Zuma Beach?  I guess it came down to this, Zombieland or Zulu Dawn.  Since I like comedies and I like both Tim Allen and Courteney Cox, I decided to get this one...besides, Courteney doesn't make many feature films, does she?

This started off strangely enough and it took me awhile to figure out just what was going on.  I soon gathered that Tim Allen's Jack Shepherd was a former super-hero who had lost all his powers but this secret government group wants him to guide a new bunch of young super-heroes (from a 6-year old girl to teenagers).  There's this guy in there that was a weird-looking version of Chevy Chase...then I realized it WAS Chevy Chase!  The film has an odd look to it's cinematography...going for that comic book look, I guess.  Overall, I didn't hate the movie, but I didn't love it either.  I guess I'm somewhere in the middle of this.  I'll give it a  I guess.  Maybe I'll like it more the next time?

(From DCO fourth Alphabet Marathon - discussion/review/banter thread on July 4th, 2010)

True Romance, a review by Silence_of_Lambs

Summary:
Clarence (Christian Slater) and Alabama (Patricia Arquette) are newlyweds who acquire an unexpected wedding present. Unknown to the blissfully happy couple, ruthless gangsters are on their tail, determined to reclaim their lost property.

My Thoughts:
As said before: I love "Natural Born Killers" and since this is based on the same script by Quentin Tarantino, it was merely a question of time until I got this too.

Now this wasn't quite what I expected.
It's a good movie, but nevertheless something's missing.
Tony Scott was very ambitioned to fill this script with life and seems to have lost it on the way. I can't really put my finger on what went wrong: The acting is great, the photography is OK, the editing is very good ... nevertheless this whole film seems ... hollow, with a bit too much "mainstream" than needed. Or in other words: What comes around as "ironic" in NBK is "pathetic" here.
It's worth watching though, and if it's only for the great appearances of Gary Oldman, Christopher Walken and Tom Sizemore.

An enjoyable flick and by far better than average.
It only has the problem (for me) that I will always compare it to the other one (and Christian Slater is not nearly as charismatic as Woody Harrelson).


My Rating: (out of possible 5)

(From Michael's random reviews on November 20th, 2010)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

The Vampire Diaries: Season One (2009/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia Warner Home Video (United Kingdom) Length: 889 min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, Commentary: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: Dutch, English, Swedish

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Plot:
Dark, brooding, pulsing with bloodlust and transcendent with romance, The Vampire Diaries - which started as a series of must-read novels by L.J. Smith - has become a must-watch television hit. Season One offers unforgettable characters, living and undead. They are vampire brothers Stefan and Damon, one good and one evil; Elena, a double for the beauty both brothers loved some 150 years earlier; plus Jeremy, Bonnie, Matt and more denizens of Mystic Falls, VA. All are caught up in a spellbinding web of secrets, passion and terror.


The Vampire Diaries
Season 1.01 Pilot
Writer: L. J. Smith (Original Material By), Kevin Williamson (Writer), Julie Plec (Writer)
Director: Marcos Siega
Cast: Nina Dobrev (Elena Gilbert), Paul Wesley (Stefan Salvatore), Ian Somerhalder (Damon Salvatore), Steven R. McQueen (Jeremy Gilbert), Sara Canning (Jenna Sommers), Katerina Graham (Bonnie Bennett), Candice Accola (Caroline Forbes), Zach Roerig (Matt Donovan), Kayla Ewell (Vicky Donovan), Michael Trevino (Tyler Lockwood), Chris William Martin (Zach Salvatore), Steve Belford (Darren), Cindy Busby (Brooke), Ben Ayres (Mr. Tanner), Marci T. House (Secretary), Wesley R. MacInnes (Peeing Guy), Curtis Lum (Peeing Guy #2)

I quite enjoy this series and the pilot is a good introduction to it. What I appreciated with the beginning of this series is, that they take some time until the female lead finds out about her love interest being a vampire. Usually in a series like this it happens in the pilot that the guy his to reveal his origins to the female lead after having to save her.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on November 13th, 2012)