The Frozen Ground

I went into this one blind, and holy god did it blindside me! The Frozen Ground is absolutely tremendous. I pretty much went in just expecting some good typical Nic Cage action alongside John Cusack, with Vanessa Hudgens as a stripper adding some nice icing on the cake. But with stellar performances from the entire cast and a constant sense of tension throughout, this chilling movie is the surprise of the year by far.

This movie is based on the true events to find the evidence that would put away Robert Hansen, the serial murderer of 17 to 21 young women, with Nic Cage playing the lead detective who picks up the case after Vanessa Hudgens managed to escape being Hansen's next victim. We the viewer are completely aware of Hansen's guilt the whole movie, just as Cage is certain of it, but this isn't the kind of mystery where it matters too much that we're not entirely left in the dark. This is a movie that's all about the hunt, and just as Hansen likes to hunt his victims, Nic Cage is out on a hunt of his own as he tries to stay a step ahead and put together a solid case that'll finally put Hansen away for good.

I really can't stress enough just how blown away I was by this movie, and a lot of it comes down to the impeccable acting on hand. Nic Cage has been having a lot of fun in a lot of campy movies as of late, but he puts on his serious face for this role and really gives us one of his true better outings in a long damn time. And John Cusack is convincing as hell as Hansen, the creepy stalker and murderer of all his young victims. And damn does this guy bring a ton of intensity to his role. Just about anytime he appears on screen you just tense up by his mere presence. The guy is seriously legitimately threatening as hell.

But while those two gave solid performances, the true shocker here came from Vanessa Hudgens. She hasn't necessarily been bad in anything I've seen her in to date, though she's never been terribly good up to this point either. And yeah, she definitely looks great and plays a good stripper, which was really all I was expecting from her here, but good god, that girl is on fire in this movie, giving us the performance of her life. Playing a young prostitute who's had it rough growing up, she delivers the goods here and then some. I was thoroughly impressed, and after this performance, she's proven that she's more than just a pretty face, and I can definitely see her going on to have a solid acting career now.

But even so, one more for that pretty face of hers!

Everything about this movie just clicked. The music kept my pulse pounding as it built up the tension. And again, even though the movie didn't feel the need to keep us in the dark too often, there were still some nice twists here, and even the moments you could see coming came at us with a ridiculous level of intensity behind them. Just as I couldn't stress enough about the acting, I too can't stress just how intense this movie can get. This one definitely got my blood pumping, and I was staring wide eyed on the edge of my seat throughout most of it.

This movie received a limited release in theaters, and it didn't come around my town just yet, but it was one of those that also got an on demand release alongside its theatrical run. So if this one doesn't open up near you, then I'd definitely recommend checking it out that way, because this is seriously one of the best movies to release all year, and by far the biggest surprise of 2013 so far. With a smart script and incredible performances that'll keep you constantly on edge, this is one intense as hell thriller that you won't want to miss.

Riddick

The latest Riddick movie had all the potential to quite possibly be the best one yet, if it weren't for the fact that it's bookended by the most bullshit cop-out beginning and ending they could've come up with. And it's such a shame, because everything in-between is Riddick-ulously good. (Sorry.)

Where Pitch Black is a sci-fi horror monster movie, and then The Chronicles of Riddick expanded things by becoming an action adventure space opera, this one scales things back down again quite a bit, though if I were to place it in any genre, this one would probably just be a straight up action flick. However, this one's broken up into three different sections, each of which has a very different feel from one another.

The movie starts off with Riddick basically just exploring this new planet he's found himself on. Alongside his dog companion, Riddick sets out to make a fresh start and find himself all over again, all the while discovering what dark secrets lie upon this planet. Playing out with very little dialogue, this section probably couldn't be farther from what we've typically come to expect from a Riddick film, and yet it's also by far the strongest section of this movie. Hell, the whole film coulda been 90 minutes of Riddick just interacting and adapting with his environment and fighting off the occasional creature that's out to get him, and I woulda been fine with that.

However, after discovering that his peaceful times in the sun are about to run out, Riddick lures out the bounty hunters in an attempt to steal a ship and escape the planet. And once the bounty hunters arrive, the movie shifts almost entirely away from Riddick's point of view, focusing solely on said bounty hunters in their mission to find and retrieve Riddick and collect on the infamous bounty on his head. At first, I was a bit wary about this sudden shift in focus, and yet this portion, too, actually plays out fairly decently itself as well. In fact, if any part of this movie shares the horror aspect of Pitch Black, it would be here, with Riddick playing the part of the monster hiding in the shadows, ghosting his victims one by one.

The last part of the movie is what we've all seen in all the trailers, that being the big monster mash finale. However, unlike Pitch Black, they completely scrap any sort of horror element upon their arrival and instead go into full throttle action mode once these beasties show up. And it all plays out fairly decently enough, with some exciting moments and some good twists along the way. But sadly, the writers of this thing apparently wrote themselves into a bit of a corner at the end, and ended things on a completely bullshit, out of nowhere moment that pretty much flatlines this thing almost immediately.

And as I mentioned, the ending wasn't the only cop-out here, as the movie starts off by pulling a Resident Evil: Afterlife and essentially retconning the ending to the previous movie. Through a brief flashback, we see how Riddick lost his position of power within the Necromonger society that he so suddenly gained at the end of Chronicles, and then... that's it. That's all that's mentioned of it. And it's really annoying and disappointing, and makes me wonder why some movies want to leave things open with so much possibility to explore new and different aspects, only to throw away all that potential and just start with a clean slate in the next installment, like none of that even happened. So in that regard, I guess that writing themselves into a corner has become a bit of a recurring element now within the Riddick series. But hell, if they were going to go this rout, I almost wish that they woulda just left out the flashback entirely, since the few scenes involving the Necromongers clearly don't fit the mold of the rest of this thing, and really stand out with their drastic clash in style.

I know that The Chronicles of Riddick wasn't nearly as widely well regarded as Pitch Black, but I actually liked it even more than the first movie. But in many ways this movie feels like a response to the negative reaction that Chronicles garnered, and while the movie's mostly solid overall, I still can't help but feel let down by the awesome potential there was here to really continue to expand where Chronicles left off. But yeah, this one definitely shares more in common with the first movie, both in scale and tone. And also like the first movie, this installment returns to an R rating, and boy do they go out of their way to show that off. There's pointless nudity on top of blatantly glorified gore, almost like they were trying a little too hard to make up for the fact that Chronicles was PG-13, but really, it just stood out and left me rolling my eyes. This wasn't that big a deal, though, and it's really a minor issue compared to the much bigger problems this movie faces.

As much as I enjoyed Chronicles, I will admit that the theatrical version wasn't without its issues as well. However, the Director's Cut version addressed and fixed literally every single problem I had with that movie, and so there's a part of me that wonders if such a cut might not be released down the line that does the same to this latest Riddick. But as is, there's a really good, solid movie in here, with decent action and an awesome slow build of mood and setting, but those damn cop-outs are what ultimately hold this thing back from being the truly great movie it has all the potential to be.

The World's End

This summer, we endured a seemingly endless barrage of mediocrity, disappointments, and worse at the movies, including but certainly not limited to...

However, little did we know that there was light at the end of the tunnel, just waiting for us at the end of our cinematic barhop:

And after finally sitting through something that was more than merely "okay", something truly worthwhile to close out the summer on a high note, well, afterwards, words such as "mediocre" or "disappointing" had long been left behind. No, in the end, there was only one word that came to mind, which our theater came together to raise our glasses and proudly chant in unison:

Oh yes! Drink up, guys, this one's on me.

Naruto Shippuden the Movie: The Lost Tower

And now we're finally on the last Naruto movie I have to review, The Lost Tower. Upon my initial viewing a couple years ago, I not only hated this thing, but I thought it was hands down the worst Naruto movie to date. However, my most recent viewing wasn't nearly as hostile, though while I still wouldn't call this movie good, it's mainly just sorta mundane.

This one's a time travel story, where Naruto gets transported back in time and happens to meet his father, Minato. See, where the selling point of Bonds was the reunion between Naruto and Sasuke, the sole selling point of this movie was the inclusion of Minato, but that's not the only thing this movie shares in common with Bonds. The structure is also similar, with half of this thing acting out as one long, ever evolving battle against the main villain, a puppet master who keeps transforming into bigger and stronger robot-like puppet bodies. Unlike the Dragon Ball feel of Bonds, though, this fight feels more like watching someone playing against the final boss of a video game or something, and even has the characters uncovering the enemy's weak spot for massive damage and all that.

Other than the big boss fight, Naruto joins the mission to protect the queen and save the people of the ruined nation and whatnot, and we also see the bond forming between father and son, as the two gradually come to realize just who one another is to each other. And, yeah, there's really nothing all that spectacular here. The action's pretty standard stuff, what little story that's here is very basic, and it all ends with everyone's minds being wiped anyways, so in the end, this is a pretty pointless movie. And equally as pointless was the inclusion of a younger Kakashi, who really doesn't contribute a damn thing outside of merely existing. And that's kinda the problem with this movie as a whole, it's not terrible, it's just another movie that happens to exist is all.

But like I said, I didn't hate it this time around, though it's still not all that great. And the lack of quality really was my major gripe with it the first time around, since the production of this movie was the reason the anime team neglected the actual anime so badly at the time, thus resulting in the complete and total butchering of the Pain arc in the anime, which really is still an unforgivable crime. But in any event, what's done is done, and really, there's not much else to say about this movie.

So there you have it then. And since I have now revisited all of the Naruto movies, I suppose I could go ahead and rank them now. So, in order from best to worst, I think they'd probably go something like this:

Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow
Road to Ninja
The Will of Fire
Bonds
Blood Prison
Legend of the Stone of Gelel
Naruto Shippuden the Movie
Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom
The Lost Tower

Naruto Shippuden the Movie: The Will of Fire

An old shinobi from the Leaf is collecting kekkei genkai users in order to create the perfect body for himself and initiate the Fourth Great Shinobi War, and the last ninja he's targeted is Kakashi and his sharingan. Kakashi has decided to sacrifice himself for the sake of the village, but Naruto, Sakura, and Sai disobey orders and make chase to save him, while Shikamaru leads the remainder of the Konoha 11 as they attempt to halt Naruto's pursuits. Everyone gets their chance to shine in The Will of Fire, which truly does feel like one of the more honest and faithful adaptations to Kishimoto's story.

In some respects, having so many characters showcased feels like it shouldn't work, especially within the confines of a 90 minute movie. Yet, they really do balance things out and give most everyone their fair share of screen time to really show their stuff. And it's not only the Leaf ninjas, they even include the Sand shinobi here, and we get to see a surprisingly awesome rematch between Naruto and Gaara. In fact, all of the fight scenes in this movie are really creative and filled with clever moments, but of all the characters showcased, no one comes out of this thing looking better than Tenten. Seriously, she's a freaking beast here! But yeah, probably the most neglected character in the main series has the most impressive feats in this movie, and as I mentioned in my Bonds review, that's one of the things that actually make me really appreciate the anime sometimes.

But not only do the characters get a chance to show their stuff, but their actual portrayals are pretty much on par with their canon selves as well. There's no overly and obnoxiously goofy Naruto to be seen here. And even with his added screen time, they didn't go overboard making Shikamaru arrogantly smart, like they sometimes do in the anime.

Another cool fact is that, of the shinobi that our main villain has already collected, three of the character designs were actually conjured up by Kishimoto himself, and were used as characters that he revived during the canon Fourth Shinobi War (though the abilities they posses in canon are completely different from the movie's portrayal). So that's pretty neat, and like Road to Ninja, the fact that Kishimoto was actually somewhat involved with at least some of the production of this particular movie probably plays a big role in just how solid it turned out in the end.

However, it's not all perfect, though what I'm about to cover really is pretty nitpicky. But there are some continuity errors that can get annoying, where characters will be wearing cloaks in one scene, only for them to disappear and reappear seemingly at will from scene to scene. And the movie ends with a really lame and forced gay joke that just comes out of nowhere and leaves a bad taste in your mouth. But honestly, outside of that, there's really not much to rag about against this movie.

The story is well written, the characters are well handled and well balanced, and the action is top notch stuff. And while this movie really does drive home its themes, unlike previous efforts, they manage to avoid a lot of the cheese in doing so this time around. This movie really is one of the more solid ones, and definitely something that fans of the series will be able to enjoy.

Character Profile: Colonel Bullet

Colonel Bullet is the commanding officer of Camp Leatherneck, and oversees the operations of the military brig known as The Web. And after the recent mishaps at The Web as a result of the Ninja Kat and her hamster friends, Bullet has been called to stand before the High Council and answer for these blunders and more.

Though he likes to put on a proper and authoritative face, behind the scenes, Bullet is a scrambled mess of a dog. Constantly anxious and in a state of frantic worry, it's no wonder that he appears to be losing control over his own command. But despite any setbacks, he still remains a skilled fighter, and has earned his rank through his undying loyalty to the Devil Corps. And when placed in the position to truly prove his worth, his chaotic nature will make him a near unstoppable force to reckon with.

www.VelcroTheNinjaKat.com

Naruto Shippuden the Movie: Bonds

Up next is the big cinematic reunion between Naruto and Sasuke. That was pretty much the entire selling point of Bonds, and though Sasuke's actually absent for most of the movie up until the end, the rest of this one actually holds up pretty well enough on its own nonetheless.

Konoha has been attacked by ninjas from the Land of Sky, and by this point, I'm seriously wondering why everyone doesn't just up and leave the village to go live somewhere else that doesn't come under attack so often. But anyways, after the attack, Shikamaru leads a four man squad including Kakashi, Shino, and Sai to track down the ninjas and form a counterattack, while Naruto, Sakura, and Hinata escort a helpful doctor and his young apprentice to provide aid back in their own nearby village. But things soon take a turn for the worse, and it's up to Naruto with the unlikely aid of Sasuke to save the day once more.

In many respects, this movie plays out much more like a Dragon Ball movie than a Naruto one, with the main villain's appearance and powers more resembling a character from that universe as well. And once the big final battle begins at about the halfway point, the remainder of the film rarely cuts away from it, as our characters go through various powerups and transformations over the course of the fight. And the first time I saw this movie, this aspect really turned me off. However, the more times I revisit this movie, the more I actually come to appreciate it as one of the stronger entries in the series.

Like many of these movies, this one also can get pretty cheesy at times with some of Naruto's preachiness. Yet, unlike the others, this one appears to be aware of its cheese, and even includes a line from Naruto where he gives forewarning that what he's about to say may come off as pretty cheesy. So it's hard to fault this particular one for that, but yeah, some of the lines here are a little cringe-inducing as they really try and drive home the themes concerning the bonds between a master and apprentice.

I also noticed that they really tended to pretty Naruto up quite a bit on a number of occasions, giving him somewhat feminine facial features at times, particularly around the eyes. That, in addition to the more female centric cast in comparison to the other movies, does make me vaguely curious if the writers didn't have a different type of bond in mind as well for this film. Surely they weren't trying to doll Naruto up for his big reunion with his long lost lover, Sasuke, were they? (lol)

Like the second movie, this one recycles the idea of portraying the main villain as a kind and gentle soul at first, though to be fair, the twist reveal is actually a little more surprising this time around. And in addition to that, there are many other ideas that would be recycled in later movies, such as half the film being one big continuous fight, or certain characters' genders being pointlessly in question for a portion of the movie. But hey, this lack of originality has long come to be expected from the guys who write Naruto filler, and these aspects don't necessarily detract from this particular movie itself.

But while that might be a bad habit for the filler writers, something they're actually pretty good at is showcasing some of the side characters that have a tendency to be neglected in the main series. In this instance, as mentioned, they include a side plot including several side characters, in which Sai and especially Shino really get a chance to shine. In contrast to the previous movie I reviewed, here its clear that the writers for this particular film actually do have a clear grasp on these characters, and actually treat many of them with even more respect than the original author himself. So that's something that this movie definitely gets right, and even though Sasuke's not in this thing a whole lot, I still felt like his inclusion was handled respectably enough, and I actually liked that they kept his reunion with Naruto relatively brief.

So all in all, this is an interesting movie. I hated it the first time I watched it, yet, every time since, I've grown to like it more and more, to the point that it's probably one of my favorites in the series. It's cheesy, but it doesn't shy away from that fact, and even so, it's not nearly as unbearable as some of the other movies can get. The characters are handled well, and the animation is really nice and fluid, though the actual art is a bit of a miss at times. But this thing ends on a really calm yet powerful note that still manages to get to me, and brings this movie to a nice closure. I'm not sure if I could safely say that I'd recommend this one to non-fans, but for fans of the series, this movie is a must watch. And if you don't like it the first time around, see if a second watch won't sway your views.