Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (6/10): Lacks the emotional impact of the first film

"Sin City is where you go in with your eyes open, or you don't come out at all."

There has been a widespread claim that if you were a fan of the first film you will definitely love this sequel, but it wasn't the case for me. I called Sin City a masterpiece nine years ago when it first came out, but A Dame to Kill For doesn't even come close to that claim. One could argue and say that the novelty of these dark graphic novel adaptations has warn off considering that when Sin City first came out the visuals were groundbreaking unlike anything we had seen before. Perhaps it may have something to do with the fact that I haven't enjoyed the recent adaptations (the last one I really liked was 2009's Watchmen), but I know that my disappointment doesn't just come from this. A Dame to Kill For is as visually striking as the first film and it captures that pulpy film noir essence really well once again. What Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez don't do well however is build the suspense and connect the intertwining storylines like they did the first time. You have all these interesting characters returning and some new faces, but the stories didn't resonate with me this time around. Despite using the same formula and delivering in visuals and style, the three different storylines don't connect together. The film still has that same dark feel to it where it seems you are watching a comic book come to life, but the stories aren't as interesting and the narration isn't as gripping. So despite enjoying the visuals, this film was a huge disappointment for me and I don't think that the reason for it was that the novelty has worn off because it was the best aspect of this sequel.

Most would agree that the best character in Sin City is Marv (Mickey Rourke) and thankfully we get a lot of him once again. The story is at its best when it centers around him. Some of the new characters were also fun to watch. Joseph Gordon Levitt as Johnny was one of my favorites in this sequel. His character is suave and cocky, but always fun. His scenes facing off the main villain played by Powers Boothe are the highlight of the film along with Marv. We also get a lot more scenes from Nancy (Jessica Alba) and this time she has more depth to her character as well. Josh Brolin also gives a solid performance as Dwight, but unfortunately his segment is the weakest. So we get all these cool characters and everything seems to be perfect once again, but somehow the stories don't intertwine as effectively as they did the first time. The stories aren't as shocking and they lack that emotional punch that Sin City delivered the first time. The film is gratuitously violent once again, but it isn't effective. The impact was missing. There were also several characters that took me out of the film. I loved Bruce Willis in the first film, but there was no need to include him here. He took me out of the movie. The longest segment in this film involving Josh Brolin and Eva Green was also the least interesting. Green has fun with her character once again like she did in the 300 sequel, but this time her storyline is way too familiar. All she does here is be nude and seduce men. The subplot where she seduces Christopher Meloni was completely unnecessary, as were his scenes with Jeremy Piven. 

So despite some of the interesting things that A Dame To Kill For had going for it, it has several flaws which make the story drag at times. This is the sort of film in which you should be having fun, but I found myself bored with some of these segment. The narration might seem silly at times, but it worked the first time as a parody of noir films. This time it felt dull. I know my review sounds negative but it is because I expected a lot more from this sequel. I still had a fun time watching Marv once again, I also appreciated that Alba had more screen time, and loved the addition of Joseph Gordon-Levitt to the already incredible cast. Unfortunately there were some elements that didn't connect with me and the stories failed to fit together as they did the first time.

My Review: 13 (4/10)

¨13 didn`t pull the trigger. You have to pull the trigger.¨

13 is a remake of a 2005 Georgian film ¨13 Tzameti¨ which was also written and directed by Gela Babluani. Unlike the original film in which Babluani also stared, this time the film had a lot of known Hollywood actors and it was filmed in color. The film has an interesting concept and it could have worked for a short film, but not for a full length feature film. Even at 97 minutes long the movie feels stretched and the dialogue really didn’t help either. There are some interesting and thrilling moments, but not enough to save this film. I had no idea what 13 was about before watching it so at the beginning I was drawn and intrigued to what was going to happen, but after the suspense was over the film got lost in the narrative. I also was expecting more from the cast because there were some interesting actors involved in the project, but the only real one who stands out in this film was Sam Riley (who I loved in Control). Riley gave a great performance and he is probably the best thing about this film. Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham, Alexander Skarsgard, and Michael Shannon were all underused, and they had little screen time to truly shine. With a better script this movie could have been much better. I was also a little disappointed with the ending, but I don’t want to give anything away, so I won`t say anything more about it.  

The less you know about the plot probably the better, but since the movie isn’t really that good I will go ahead and tell you about it. If you don’t want to know anything about the story then just go ahead and skip this paragraph. Vince (Sam Riley) is an electrician who has to put his home on mortgage in order to pay for his father`s operations because he`s very ill. Apparently the operation isn’t successful and they have to operate him again, which means Vince is going to need more money. That same day while he is working at someone`s house named William (Michael Berry Jr.) he overhears him speaking to his wife about the opportunity he just got of making a lot of money, while holding an envelope he just opened in his hands. That same day, William overdoses, and Vince doesn’t hesitate in taking the envelope and trying to figure out if he can make some money in his place. In the envelope he finds a number of hints that will lead him to some sort of secret place. Once he arrives to the location indicated he is taken by a driver named Jack (Alexander Skarsgard) to an underground building where a lot of wealthy people are gathered together making bets. He is given a number, 13, and before he can back out he discovers that he is part of a deadly game where other men gamble on his life. There are others just like him such as Jefferson (Mickey Rourke), Ronald (Ray Winstone), and many more that are all given numbers and are forced to point guns at each other with one bullet. They all have to shoot, those who are lucky survive.

13 is really poorly developed. The concept was interesting at first, but it got really boring after a while thanks in most part to a terrible script and very little character development. There were so many characters that were just wasted in the film and some of the background stories that were told about them were useless. Mickey Rourke and Jason Statham are both great actors, but their roles in this film were absolutely pointless. I really don’t understand how a movie like this needed to be made. The only positive thing I can say about 13 is that Sam Riley had a lead role and he was great. He was the only character that was really developed, and he did a decent job with the poor material he had to work with. There were a couple of intense moments, but like I said before, it could have worked well in a short film, but not in a movie like this. I really wouldn’t recommend this movie, unless you are a fan of Sam Riley (in that case just watch Control all over again and skip this).

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My Review: The Expendables (7/10)

¨ We are the shadow, the smoke in your eyes, the ghosts that hide in the night. ¨

Sylvester Stallone directs, writes, and stars in The Expendables, an action packed movie that knows exactly who its target audience is: Men. This film pays homage to the action movies from the 80`s and 90´s, and either stars or has cameos from most of these actors (Dolph Lundgren, Mickey Rourke, Eric Roberts, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, and Arnold Schwarzenegger). The Expendables also stars some of today`s action heroes as well such as Jet Li, Jason Statham, Steve Austin, and Randy Couture. Stallone had previously written and directed other of his movies, such as the Rocky and Rambo franchise. The reason I actually enjoyed this movie was obviously not because of the plot, but because it was just great to see all these stars working together and doing what they do best. The action scenes are raw and really bring back the nostalgic feeling of the 80`s B action movies. The film will satisfy those blood thirsty action fans who want to see real choreographed action scenes, plenty gun and knife fights, crushed bones, and a lot of explosions without relying on the CGI effects. The Expendables isn`t a smart movie, the plot is formulaic and predictable, but the action makes up for it. It doesn`t try to be something it shouldn´t, it knows exactly who its target audience is and will only satisfy them. It`s not like ¨Killers¨ for example that really lost itself by trying to target different audience groups and couldn`t be defined in any genre. The Expendables is a fun and entertaining action film and it doesn`t try to be anything else.

Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone) is the leader of a group of mercenaries who call themselves the Expendables. The team consists of Lee Christmas (Jason Statham), a man who really appreciates his knives and is having some love issues; Ying Yang (Jet Li), an expert in martial arts who is always being made fun of because he is the smallest of the group; Hale Caesar (Terry Crews), who handles heavy machinery; Toll Road (Randy Couture), the demolitionist, and Gunner Jensen (Dolph Lundgren) the sniper who is beginning to go a little crazy. The Expendables return from a successful mission in Somalia, although Barney has to cut Gunner from the group because he is becoming dangerous and unreliable. Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) offers the group a new mission on a small South American island where they have to overthrow the military dictator General Garza (David Zayas). The General receives the money to support his military dictatorship from an American drug dealer named James Munroe (Eric Roberts). Barney and Lee travel to the island in order to scout the enemy where they meet one of the rebels named Sandra (Giselle Itié). Barney decides the mission is too risky and doesn`t want the group to get involved. He offers Sandra to escape with them, but she decides to stay and fight the enemy. Back in America, Barney has a talk with his good friend and tattoo artist Tool (Mickey Rourke) and he decides the right thing to do is accept the job and rescue Sandra.

The Expendables is one of those fun action movies that is enjoyed even more because of the cast. I would recommend this movie only to fans of the 80`s action films who would like to bring back the memories. This is not a film for everyone, and is specifically a man made movie. I really had a lot of fun, but this is no masterpiece. This isn`t a smart action movie with good dialogues like Tarantino films, but it has the best action stars who are really good at kicking butt. The movie also has a couple of funny scenes which made the movie all the more entertaining. The fighting scenes were excellent, there is a lot of gore, but the plot is pretty simple, however that doesn`t take away all the fun you experience while watching all these men get their bones broken and killed. It has been a long time since I saw such a high body count, and gratuitous violence, but this is the sort of thing you are expecting from a movie like this. I didn`t think I would have as much fun with The Expendables like I did, but this is definitely not a movie for everyone. If you hate violent films then you will not want to see this. This is for fans of the 80`s action movies who would like to bring back some of the nostalgia.

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My Review: Iron Man 2 (8/10)

¨ If you could make God bleed, people will cease to believe in Him. There will be blood in the water, and the sharks will come. ¨

(8/10) Jon Favreau does a great job again with the direction of the sequel to his 2008 hit, Iron Man. He has made a sequel that is just as good and entertaining as the first movie was, and he even had some screen time as Tony Stark`s personal bodyguard in this second installment. Just like in the first film, the secret to the movie`s success is Robert Downey Jr. `s performance as Tony Stark, who unlike other superheroes is even more fun to watch as himself than when he suits up. The film is highly entertaining and the two hours the movie lasts just fly by. This is what summer movies are all about and Iron Man 2 has lifted the standards for entertainment this season. The problem most sequels have is that the novelty of the first movie is gone, and yes Iron Man 2 misses that, but the film is still so entertaining and it is so fun to watch Downey Jr. playing Tony Stark that we just can`t get enough of him. The special effects, the characters, the action, are all good, but the true success of this film (like the previous one) relies on Robert Downey Jr. `s performance and how fun it is to see him playing this character. There are new villains, new superheroes, a new plot, but none of that outshines Downey Jr. and we just want to see more of him without caring too much for all the other elements. This is not a superior movie than the first one, but it is just as equally as entertaining and if you enjoyed the first one then you will enjoy this one. This time the screenplay was written by Justin Theroux (who also wrote Tropic Thunder) and there were some very funny lines and dialogues. The plot was also smart and up to standards for superhero movies, but I will not get tired of repeating it, Jon Favreau hit a homerun when he casted Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark.

The movie picks up where the first one ended; Tony Stark is telling the world that he is Iron Man and that he wants to maintain world peace after all the destruction that his company had caused in the past. Somewhere in Russia an old man is watching this statement on TV and telling his son, Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), that that should be him and not Tony Starks. Right after he says this he dies and Ivan gives a vengeful cry and begins working on some sort of powerful weapon. Six months go by and Stark`s confession has caused the government to try to force him to turn in the suit so that they can use it as a military weapon. They have tried to make another suit with the help of Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell), a weapon specialist and clearly one of Stark`s rivals, but he has failed, so now they are trying to take his suit through legal actions. Tony has a bigger issue to deal with; the pacemaker like device he is using as a heart is deteriorating his blood and he is heading towards a painful death if he doesn`t discover another element that can replace the one he is currently using. Because of this Tony decides to appoint Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) as the CEO and president of Starks Industry and hires the very attractive and sexy Natalie Rushman (Scarlett Johansson) as his secretary. His best friend, Lt. Col. James Rhodes (played by Don Cheadle instead of Terrence Howard who played him in the first version) works with the government and is forced to ask Tony to collaborate with them by giving them the suit after an incident with Ivan has showed the world that Iron Man (God) can bleed.

Iron Man 2 is one of the most entertaining movies of the year. There is nothing new about the sequel, but it still provides a lot of entertainment. As sequels go, I think The Dark Knight was a much better one as it introduced some new elements, an unforgettable villain, and was even superior to Batman Begins. Iron Man 2 is not superior to the first one, but it is entertaining enough to equal it thanks in most part to Robert Downey Jr. who has really found the perfect role. The villains were also interesting enough; Sam Rockwell and Mickey Rourke are great actors and they contributed to this film. Don Cheadle is a talented actor, but I really didn`t like the switch they made with Terrence Howard, I think he fit the character better and this is probably one of the only negative aspects about this movie. Scarlett Johansson was placed mostly for eye candy (although no one can argue she is a great actress as well) and she didn`t disappoint either. Jon Favreau also has some funny lines as Happy Hogan and delivers some laughs. Samuel Jackson has a couple of good scenes as Nick Fury, and you can`t help but get excited for The Avengers movie since this one serves as a sort of transition for that. Overall I really enjoyed this movie and recommend it. If you liked the first one then you won`t be disappointed although I can`t say it is better because it is more of the same, but same is good enough for me as far as entertainment goes.