LordGrimm
The Forever Man
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A Trilogy of Revenge: A Grimm Review *Possible Spoilers*
Well, the month of April has definitely been one for vengeance. I'm surprised I haven't considering getting a gun, what with all the violence "entertaining" me over the past few weeks.
First, it was the Punisher . Based off of a more recent adaption of the Punisher comic book (Written by Garth Ennis), Thomas Jane's depiction of Frank Castle was a bit spotty at times. I never considered Frank Castle's downtime to be a suicidal fixation, though it is completely understandable from a humanistic point of view. However, it is the "superhero" face they put on the movie that truly kills it in the end.
Frank Castle a.k.a. The Punisher is not a hero, but a cold-blooded killer to the end. From the moment his family was gunned down, it became a dance of death for him. If a cop got in the way, kill him, if an old lady stood in the way of his vengeance, snipe them both. The movie tried in some form or fashion to put a superhero face on this character, and it doesn't fit. Castle's enemy, Howard Saint (played by John Travolta) exposed more of the real Punisher's cruelty than Thomas Jane did. No mercy, a cold kill.
One positive out of all of this is that regardless of my viewpoints, The Punisher movie turns out to be a relatively good flick. Certainly more of a rentable movie, than a matinee showing, it successfully shows an element of vengeance and a man on the edge.
Missing effects - The Russian's head was cut off and displayed in quite a forthright manner, even as the Punisher yells out, "Who's next".
The main enemy, an old lady whose sons had been killed by Castle, gets torn apart by several polar bears (Castle punched one in the nose) and is later kicked, nubs and all, into a blazing fire (not unlike Saint being set ablaze). When the directors decided to implement an element of humor I trembled, to bad they couldn't have given us some comedy on par with American Pyscho. Much more appropriate for the character.
Next, it was Kill Bill, vol. 2, a decidely better movie than it's first half, and yet at the same time a very different one at that. Vol. 1 was all action, a woman wakes filled with a wrath, that a man she once loved had the audacity to kill her, and without even a warning. She's bound and determined to get bloody satisfaction . . . if only she can move her big toe.
The second half, we discover that killer's remorse has set in, and the remaining members of the Viper Squad feel somewhat guilty for her supposed death. The believe they deserve death, and she her revenge, but not without a fight. Sadly, ten minutes into the show, we know how everything will end and yet, it still doesn't fail to entertain. Unlike standard scripts, the origin story of the Bride is showed to us, from her beginning training with Pei Mei to her reasoning for leaving the life.
The Intensity - Like many have said, being buried alive has got to be the most terrifying experience possible, as I suffered along with her (am I bit clostaphobic?). While she didn't quite steal the show, Darryl Hannah's play as Elle Driver was most impressive (Did she smoke alot of cigarettes to deepen her voice or has she made a career out of playing a girlish sounding ditz?). While expressing her hatred of Beatrix Kiddo, she exposed the honor code of a warrior by killing Budd (who I believe had too little airtime) with a black mamba snake . . . of all things. Damn but it is hard to hate any of the characters in Quentin's movies, but especially this one! I definitely can't wait for the second DVD release, I'll have to pause the sequence, maybe I can watch in slowmo as Kiddo rips out Elle's eye and then slowly squishes it. I'm suddenly hungry for some squid, how about you? Nice credit endings . . . Is Elle really dead?
Finally, Man on Fire, a decidely better version of what the Punisher could've been. No comic book violence here, my friends, but downright brutality. With Direction by Tony Scott, acting by Denzel Washington and a screenplay by Brian Helgeland, you know this is gonna be good. As most have said, the first half of the movie was a bit on the slow side, more because we are ansy for some action (Man on Fire, yes?) than any other reason. We are introduced to a man, John W. Creasy, who after 16 years as a government assassin, finds that life has very little meaning anymore. Guilt has driven him to the drink and a nightly test of wills; on one side a bullet, the other his brains. Then one day a young girl named Pita enters his life . . . and shows him a new one. As they live in Mexico City, every 60 minutes someone is kidnapped . . . and young Pita is no exception. Unfortunately for the kidnappers, Creasy is a man on fire who proceeds to gain his revenge using tactics both horrifying and sickenly amusing (Let's just hope the poor soul loses his interest in spicy chili . . . with beans).
Is it mere coincidence that three movies of revenge hit theaters days apart from each other?
Well, the month of April has definitely been one for vengeance. I'm surprised I haven't considering getting a gun, what with all the violence "entertaining" me over the past few weeks.
First, it was the Punisher . Based off of a more recent adaption of the Punisher comic book (Written by Garth Ennis), Thomas Jane's depiction of Frank Castle was a bit spotty at times. I never considered Frank Castle's downtime to be a suicidal fixation, though it is completely understandable from a humanistic point of view. However, it is the "superhero" face they put on the movie that truly kills it in the end.
Frank Castle a.k.a. The Punisher is not a hero, but a cold-blooded killer to the end. From the moment his family was gunned down, it became a dance of death for him. If a cop got in the way, kill him, if an old lady stood in the way of his vengeance, snipe them both. The movie tried in some form or fashion to put a superhero face on this character, and it doesn't fit. Castle's enemy, Howard Saint (played by John Travolta) exposed more of the real Punisher's cruelty than Thomas Jane did. No mercy, a cold kill.
One positive out of all of this is that regardless of my viewpoints, The Punisher movie turns out to be a relatively good flick. Certainly more of a rentable movie, than a matinee showing, it successfully shows an element of vengeance and a man on the edge.
Missing effects - The Russian's head was cut off and displayed in quite a forthright manner, even as the Punisher yells out, "Who's next".
The main enemy, an old lady whose sons had been killed by Castle, gets torn apart by several polar bears (Castle punched one in the nose) and is later kicked, nubs and all, into a blazing fire (not unlike Saint being set ablaze). When the directors decided to implement an element of humor I trembled, to bad they couldn't have given us some comedy on par with American Pyscho. Much more appropriate for the character.
Next, it was Kill Bill, vol. 2, a decidely better movie than it's first half, and yet at the same time a very different one at that. Vol. 1 was all action, a woman wakes filled with a wrath, that a man she once loved had the audacity to kill her, and without even a warning. She's bound and determined to get bloody satisfaction . . . if only she can move her big toe.
The second half, we discover that killer's remorse has set in, and the remaining members of the Viper Squad feel somewhat guilty for her supposed death. The believe they deserve death, and she her revenge, but not without a fight. Sadly, ten minutes into the show, we know how everything will end and yet, it still doesn't fail to entertain. Unlike standard scripts, the origin story of the Bride is showed to us, from her beginning training with Pei Mei to her reasoning for leaving the life.
The Intensity - Like many have said, being buried alive has got to be the most terrifying experience possible, as I suffered along with her (am I bit clostaphobic?). While she didn't quite steal the show, Darryl Hannah's play as Elle Driver was most impressive (Did she smoke alot of cigarettes to deepen her voice or has she made a career out of playing a girlish sounding ditz?). While expressing her hatred of Beatrix Kiddo, she exposed the honor code of a warrior by killing Budd (who I believe had too little airtime) with a black mamba snake . . . of all things. Damn but it is hard to hate any of the characters in Quentin's movies, but especially this one! I definitely can't wait for the second DVD release, I'll have to pause the sequence, maybe I can watch in slowmo as Kiddo rips out Elle's eye and then slowly squishes it. I'm suddenly hungry for some squid, how about you? Nice credit endings . . . Is Elle really dead?
Finally, Man on Fire, a decidely better version of what the Punisher could've been. No comic book violence here, my friends, but downright brutality. With Direction by Tony Scott, acting by Denzel Washington and a screenplay by Brian Helgeland, you know this is gonna be good. As most have said, the first half of the movie was a bit on the slow side, more because we are ansy for some action (Man on Fire, yes?) than any other reason. We are introduced to a man, John W. Creasy, who after 16 years as a government assassin, finds that life has very little meaning anymore. Guilt has driven him to the drink and a nightly test of wills; on one side a bullet, the other his brains. Then one day a young girl named Pita enters his life . . . and shows him a new one. As they live in Mexico City, every 60 minutes someone is kidnapped . . . and young Pita is no exception. Unfortunately for the kidnappers, Creasy is a man on fire who proceeds to gain his revenge using tactics both horrifying and sickenly amusing (Let's just hope the poor soul loses his interest in spicy chili . . . with beans).
Is it mere coincidence that three movies of revenge hit theaters days apart from each other?
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