AMB Reviews

Hello everyone and thanks for checking out my new movie review website! My name is Anthony and this website is filled with my reviews on various movies. Right now, it's pretty new, so I will be updating it on a regular basis, so keep checking back to see if some of YOUR favorite movies have been reviewed! I'm adding new ones every week!

~Anthony~

PS- Feel free to Contact me either by the online submission form or my e-mail, requesting me to review a movie. As long as it's not explicit and/or inappropriate, I'll probably end up reviewing it! 

You are the  visitor!   

 *BREAKING NEWS (5-21-09)!*

Anthony's movie review of "Rachel Getting Married" (also published on this website) was just recently published in the March issue of the popular teen magazine, "Teen Ink." This magazine reaches thousands of schools, teachers, and teenagers every month and one of his movie reviews now appears in it! To look through this magazine ONLINE FOR FREE, simply click on the link below and check it out!

http://www.teenink.com/Issues/2009-March.php

Hey guys... it's Anthony. I just wanted to let you all know, that just because my reviews date back only to October 2008... I will still review a movie for you older than that. Just shoot me an e-mail or use the online "Contact Me" page, and give me the title. I won't post it on the website, but instead will send it straight to your e-mail inbox! Make sure to give me your e-mail address and I will try and send you the review within a week. Thanks and I hope this helps!

Below is a list of several upcoming movie reviews to be looking for (they'll probably be released anytime in the next week or so):

My Sister's Keeper

The following movies are a list of the most recent films I have reviewed, so that you can stay on top of everything! (If these reviews are not posted on the homepage, they can always be found in the Movie Review Index).

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen

The Proposal

Imagine That

Up

Land Of The Lost

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen: 5/10 Stars

Release Date: June 24, 2009

Content Advisory: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action violence, language, some crude and sexual material and brief drug material. Action is near nonstop. Explosions, gunfire, and robots fighting each other is almost always dominating the screen. Though it's frequent and intense, it's also mainly bloodless. A woman straddles a man on bed. Two dogs hump each other. Several stand-ins for f-words. and a salty scattering of milder cussing throughout. Several posters of bikini-clad women. A woman eats marijuana laced brownies.

Review:

My dad hated this movie and my sister loved it. Me? Well, I found myself right in the middle, neither liking or disliking it...

In Short:

"Transformers 2" is a Michael Bay film. That, in itself should be enough to tell you that there will be over-the-top special effects, lots of fighting and... explosions. Lots of them. This film, however, deals with Sam Witwicky who, after going to college, wants to live just a normal life. But that is impossible to achieve, however, when the Decepticons are brought back to life and now are after the information stored in Sam's brain to destroy the world. Though most movies use some CGI to tell an exciting story, this film uses a very thin plot to use a load of CGI. Overall, this film was entertaining, if overdone and overlong.

In Full:

"Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" takes place shortly after the first. The humans have befriended the Autobots who are now used to destroy any remaining Decepticons. But the ruler of all Decepticons still exists. And with one shard of the cube still remaining to bring back the rest of the robots, it will be a race against time before they take over the world. Sam Witwicky is heading off to college and is still hooked up with his girlfriend, Mikaela. And even though Sam just wants to live a normal life, the Decepticons are after what's inside Sam's mind. Looks like it's time for more explosions, robot fights, and gunfire. A whole two and a half hours of it. The movie itself serves no reason to exist, and was only made to show off an impressive CGI budget. It was entertaining at first, but after the first hour and a half, the constant action grew old.

Shia Labeouf and Megan Fox return as Sam Witwicky and Mikaela Banes. Shia Labeouf has come a long way since his starring role in Disney Channel's "Even Stevens." His acting has matured a lot, and I found his performance great for what little dialogue he was actually given for a main character. He spent a lot of the time running around and dodging huge robots, but when he wasn't, he did a fine job. Megan Fox, though a decent actress, seems to only be on screen to attract men with her belly shirts and short shorts. Though she plays a strong character, she also plays a very sexualized character and that brought down her whole performance for me. The cast is overall, however, is rounded off well and was one of its pros.

Speaking of pros... the visuals are both a pro and con to this film. Michael Bay wastes no time diving headfirst into the action, which starts off within the first five minutes of this movie. It was all completely unrealistic, over the top, and a lot of fun... for the first half. Your head can only take so many explosions before you start to get a headache. That's what's the problem. Though the CGI special effects are part of what makes this movie entertaining, it's also what makes it annoying. Bay should work on controlling and limiting his special effects. Eventually, it starts to wear down the storyline. And with a storyline about as thin as air, it starts to wear down quickly.

Besides the fact that this movie was way overdone, it was also way overlong. Clocking in at 2.5 hours, that's usually not too much to ask from an action movie. After all, Lord of the Rings 3 was 3.5 hours long and my eyes didn't stray from the screen once. This, however, is a different story. When the film reached 90 minutes, my head began to tinge with pain. At 2 hours, it was aching. And by the time the end credits finally rolled around, my head was throbbing. The movie didn't serve any purpose and because of that, it made my headache even more unbearable. There seemed to be no flow, no control, no order to the movie.

All of this being said... I have to say that I did enjoy some of Transformers. The beginning proved to be very entertaining. At that point, all of the CGI was exciting and new. Halfway through, however, it started to grow old. And when the final and supposedly exciting climatic battle rolled around, I simply yawned and grew impatient for everything to work out perfectly and the end credits to roll. It certainly was a predictable flick. It exists only to show off some impressive visual effects and nothing else. I could've watched the first Transformers and received at least a stronger plot. It's a completely 50/50, mediocre film that will be forgotten about in a year or less.

The Proposal: 8/10 Stars

Release Date: June 19, 2009

Content Advisory: Rated PG-13 for sexual content, nudity and language. A women's private parts remain just barely covered by her arms and a cloth. She then tumbles on top of a naked man, but their private areas are strategically covered up. A stripper wearing only underwear suggestively dances in front of the main character. A scattering of some mild swear words.

Review:

Sandra Bullock is my favorite actress. She's witty, funny, and very talented. Let's just say that I've been waiting to see this film for several months now...

In Short:

"The Proposal" is Sandra Bullock's comeback to the chick flick business in quite a while now. After taking a turn and starring in more serious films, she's back in this fluffy delight as Margaret Tate, a very mean-spirited and lonely woman. But when her Visa runs out and she's threatened to move back to Canada, she blackmails her assistant into marrying her so they will both be able to keep their job. It all leads up to one chaotic, comedic, and at times touching chick flick that actually kept me entertained throughout. It's a charming film that is personally my favorite "Sandra Bullock chick flick."

In Full:

Margaret Tate is the manager of a particularly large editing industry. Her assistant, Andrew Paxton is obedient and dedicated, even though she's rather mean to him (think Meryl Streep to Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada). But, when Ms. Tate's faced with the threat to move back to Canada after her Visa expires, she hatches the perfect plan: marry Mr. Paxton, keep her job, and it will all be over just like that. They travel up to Andrew's family's house for the weekend, and though they end up hating each other... this is a chick flick. There's got to be some romance in there somewhere. Though the storyline was formulaic and predictable, it remained humorous and even touching, and can succesfully be considered a decent chick flick, a genre that I don't really care too much for.

Sandra Bullock is, as you already know, my favorite actress. From Miss Congeniality to 28 Days to Premonition, she always brings a sort of light to the big screen. Her performance in this was not her best, but still very good, as she played the cold and distant woman who slowly warmed up to life and all it has to offer. She was no Meryl Streep, but she was still pretty darn good. Newcomer, Ryan Reynolds joins the cast as her "fiancee" and, along with a decent performance as well, turns in great chemistry with Bullock as well. Betty White also plays the hilarious Grandma Annie, who had me laughing constantly.

Though I do not know where this film was shot, the movie was supposed to take place in Alaska, and the scenery ended up being gorgeous. The several boat trips taken during this trip showed off the marvelous lake (or was it the ocean) while the house that was used for most of the film was absolutely gorgeous. From spacious rooms with huge glass windows and slick wooden flooring. What I'm trying to say is... you won't be disappointed if you are looking for marvelous scenery. The backdrop itself in this film is like a dream come true.

As I did mention above, however, I did find the film formulaic and predictable. Not that I expected anything different. This is a chick flick. A pure, fluffy chick flick. There's never much substance in any films of that genre. That's just what I'll have to accept. [Spoiler Warning]  It's probably easy to figure out by now that the two main characters, who hated each other at first, end up falling in love and getting married. After you think that everything's over, the guy chases after the woman to express his love for her, they kiss, and it's a happy ending... as always. While most will find that cute, I found it to be predictable and unoriginal as well, as pleasant and charming as the film was as a whole.

"The Proposal" is a recycled film. There's not much in here we haven't seen before. Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds have great chemistry and turn up great performances, but I still couldn't help but think of all the other films I had seen so similar in style to this one. The ending isn't very hard to figure out. That being said, this movie was also very funny and warm spirited, with a good amount of scenes that would make you tear up before smacking your funny bone again. Its humor is persistent, its dialogue witty, its acting wonderful, yet its formula weak. It isn't the greatest movie I've ever seen, but it's still a very pleasant chick flick.