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Babylon A.D., a review by Rich

Babylon A.D.



Veteran-turned-mercenary Thoorop (Diesel) takes the high-risk job of escorting a woman from Russia to America in a post-apocalyptic world. But it isn't long before they are pursued by warring factions who are both determined to take the girl, and it is up to Thoorop to stop them.

Ignore the trailer for this film, it will give the impression this is worth spending your hard earned dosh on, it isn't. A woeful effort which is reminiscent of the superior Children of Men, the effects and action don't get going till the last half an hour, and these are so choppy it is difficult to understand what is actually happening.
The acting is poor, the action pedestrian and badly filmed, direction amateur and characters unbelievable. An awful ending where it is jumped several years in advance without explanation or what happened in-between culminates this waste of viewing time.
 

(From Riches Random Reviews on January 6th, 2009)

Man of Steel, a review by Dragonfire

Man of Steel



This is a reboot of the Superman movies, going back and dealing with the origins of the character again.  I really enjoyed Superman Returns, though I know a lot of people didn't and the decision was made to restart the movies.  Christopher Nolan is a producer and he worked on the story as well, so that made me hopeful before I saw the movie.

Once again, the movie starts on Krypton, though more time is spent there and a little more about the planet is shared.  I liked that more of Krypton is shared and thing it looks very interesting.  Jor-El has a decent amount to do this time, something else that I liked.  A sort of hologram of him does turn up later in the movie too and it seems like it is more able to interact. Zod is an actual military general, in charge of the safety for the entire planet.  He agrees with Jor-El about the planet being in danger, but his method for dealing with it is very different and gets him and his followers sent to the phantom zone.  After the bit on Krypton, the movie jumps forward to show Clark as an adult, trying to figure out how to use his abilities.  Important moments from his childhood are shown through flashbacks.  That does mess with the flow just a bit, but it works overall.  Clark discovers who he really is and meets Lois Lane when Zod shows up.

I did end up seeing this one in 3D because of the start times.  The 3D didn't add anything, though I have discovered that fewer people tend to go to the 3D shows, so it wasn't as crowded.  The effects are done well, though I do get why some people have said there was too much focus on the effects.  Later in the movie, there is massive action that wipes out a lot of Smallville before moving on to Metropolis where several buildings are destroyed when Superman and Zod fight.  That does go on a little longer than it needed to, though I do think it is needed to show that Zod is just as strong  and he won't be stopped easily. 

While some things are the same, there are other things that are a little different.  Most of those things I think worked for the movie. Jonathan especially is shown to keep telling Clark that he has to keep his abilities a secret no matter what.  That just doesn't exactly seem like Jonathan to me.  While it is clear he loves Clark, he doesn't seem as supportive as other versions of the character have been.  A lot of people have been upset by something that happens late in the movie.  I'm not exactly thrilled by how that thing worked out, but I also see why it was done and how it will play into the future for Superman as well. 

I really like this version of Lois.  She was always capable, and smart, but somehow, this Lois seems a little smarter.  Superman does save her at times, but she isn't just a damsal in distress and she is active in an attempt to deal with Zod and everything that is going on. 

Man of Steel has a few issues, but it is a very good movie that works well overall.  It is worth seeing.



I did post a longer review on Epinions.

Man of Steel

(From Man of Steel - No Spoilers on June 25th, 2013)

Tom's Random Reviews, a review by Tom

Title: Spin City: Season One
Year: 1996
Director:
Rating: NR
Length: 537 Min.
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital Stereo, Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo
Subtitles:

Stars:


Plot:
Spin City is a smart, sophisticated ABC sitcom about the behind-the-scenes workings of City Hall in the biggest city in America. Workaholic Mike Flaherty (Michael J. Fox) is the Deputy Mayor of New York City, serving as Mayor Randall Winston's (Barry Bostwick, Rocky Horror Picture Show) key strategist and much-needed handler.

Mike runs the city with the help of his oddball staff: an anxious and insecure press secretary (Richard Kind, Mad About You); a sexist, boorish chief of staff (Alan Ruck, Ferris Bueller's Day Off); an impeccably groomed gay activist running minority affairs (Michael Boatman, Arliss); a sharp and efficient, man-crazy accountant (Connie Britton, Friday Night Lights); and an idealistic young speechwriter (Alexander Chaplin). Like Mike, they are all professionally capable but personally challenged.

Spin City was an immediate hit when it debuted in 1996. The series reunited Fox with Family Ties executive producer and creator Gary David Goldberg and proved that the magic of their creative partnership was enduring.

Extras:
Closed Captioned
Commentary
Featurettes
Trailers

I enjoyed watching this first season of Spin City. The actors were seemingly comfortable in their roles fast and developed great group dynamics.

#	Episode	Rating
01	Pilot
02	The Great Pretender
03	The Apartment
04	Pride and Prejudice
05	The Rivals
06	A Star Is Born
07	Grand Illusion
08	The High and the Mighty
09	Meet Tommy Dugan
10	The Competition
11	Dog Day Afternoon
12	Criss Cross
13	Bye Bye Love
14	Starting Over
15	Gabby's Song
16	Kiss Me, Stupid
17	An Affair To Remember
18	Snowbound
19	Striptease
20	Deaf Becomes Her
21	Hot In the City
22	Bone Free
23	The Mayor Who Came To Dinner
24	Mayor Over Miami

(From Tom's Random Reviews on June 14th, 2009)