Most films fall in one of three categories: good, bad, and worse. Then there are those films that fall somewhere between good and bad. These are those films. Please feel free to add to the list. Worst scifi films of 2011 coming soon.
"Just Ok" Scifi films of 2011
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| Hugh Jackson with his robot fighter in Real Steel |
Real Steel - We've seen this before. A down on us luck, washed up fighter with a strained relationship with his young son, gets a chance to redeem himself by training a new boxer. Only this time, the boxers are robots. That's pretty much it. Very predictable, but overall entertaining.
Hugh Jackman's enthusiasm saves the film...barely.
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| The always handsome Aaron Eckhart |
Battle Los Angeles -
Battle LA was decent, not good, just decent. If you want a movie that you can mindlessly watch and chew your popcorn, then this is the movie for you. You shouldn't expect much of a story or any useful dialogue. Just stock up at the concession stand and enjoy the ride. Unfortunately the typical hollywood script writer thinks that you're stupid and don't have the emotional depth of a gnat. When will hollywood learn that the average person is smarter than they think we are? And yes, most of us who have a job, a house, and a family are average people. Anyhoo, the main reason I watched it was Aaron Eckhart. Aaron can do no wrong!
Thor -
The middle range is where Thor lives. Thor is good, not great and that's ok. Overall, I liked the film. If you take it for what it is, it's a fun popcorn flick, with magnificent art direction, set design, and spectacular costumes. As expected, Kenneth Branagh knows how to make a beautiful movie. However, Thor did not have as much action as the previews suggested and Thor suffers slightly because of this. Thor is a transitional film with the expectation of at least four additional sequels. Thus, this film has the task of introducing all of the characters, including the less interesting human ones. This may be a franchise in which the sequels are better than the original.
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| Chris Evans as Captain America |
Captain America -
Captain America: The First Avenger is a good movie. It’s miles away from the action-deprived Thor and the cgi-laden Green Lantern. Captain America had the potential to be a great comic book movie, similar to the Dark Knight franchise, but it fell short. Captain America started great, stalled in the middle, but ended well.
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| Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford in Cowboys and Aliens |
Cowboys and Aliens -
I love westerns and I love science fiction, as evident in this blog. So I should enjoy the mashup of the two genres right? Surprisingly, not in this instance. Cowboys & Aliens may be unique and cleverly titled, but disappointingly, Cowboys & Aliens is a popcorn flick at best. Cowboys & Aliens is somewhat entertaining and a complete visual spectacle, but it has little substance. Admittedly, parts of the film are fun to watch.
COMING SOON - LIST OF THE WORST SCIFI FILMS OF 2011!!
I put Captain America squarely as my worst film of 2011. Right there with Green Hornet. I thought it was the cheesiest, hokiest thing I'd ever seen with zero cohesive plot. I did not buy this guy's total goodness for one second. And the CGI was downright creepy. It was like watching an LSD fueled vision from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. And why did his pants not rip ala the Hulk? Vita Rays work on pants but not on shirts I guess. ;)
ReplyDeleteI LOVED Thor, then again Chris Hemsworth is hot hot hot and all that gorgeous brawn worked on my brain. ;)
Ha, I remember your review of Captain America. I remember that you hated it.
ReplyDeleteCap'n America reminded me of an old-fashioned super hero movie. Similar to The Rocketeer and The Phantom. I liked it ok, but I'm not interested in seeing it again.
I agree with most of these, but I couldn't even make it all the way through Battle:LA... jittery corner camera snooze fest for me.
ReplyDeleteHaven't watched any of these. D:
ReplyDeleteI liked The Phantom. It was a great old-fashioned hero story. I'm glad you remembered my review, but I guess that means I'm so old now, I repeat myself. :)
ReplyDeleteOkay, now I have to go see Cowboys and Aliens if only because Harrison Ford is in it. Have a Merry Christmas. :)
ReplyDeleteI personally rank "Captain America" as a tad more than just okay.
ReplyDeleteCaptain America and Thor both go on my best list. Battle Los Angeles was good, just a bit intense.
ReplyDeleteCaptain America definitely falls into the "better than okay" category. It was a damn good film. On the other hand, Battle Los Angeles was downright bad. Cowboys & Aliens was very disappointing. Thor was good enough to recommend. I haven't seen Real Steel.
ReplyDeleteLet's see, not named yet and therefore potentially on the bad list are Super 8, Green Lantern, X-Men: First Class, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, In Time, The Thing, Apollo 18, Melancholia, Another Earth, Transformers 3 (please tell me this is on the bad list), Limitless, Source Code, The Adjustment Bureau, I Am Number 4, Contagion, Paul, and Mars Needs Moms.
(And, no, I haven't seen all of those.)
Il primo mi ha ricordato la puntata dei Simpson dedicata a Robot Wars! :D
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