m0ngy

'John Carter' is brilliant, and I'd love to see a sequel. The cast is perfect, the plot, pace, cinematography, CGI, it's all very good. What it is, is a swashbuckling, Errol Flynn-like melodrama set in space, as the author intended. It is, dare I say 'traditional' story telling, in turns funny, exciting, dramatic, and easily as good as any Spielberg or Lucas production. What it isn't, is the kind of film deemed interesting to the critics, because they've unfairly panned it. I even shed a tear at the end, I was that caught-up in this fantastic, old school space adventure. Highly recommended.

'Street Kings' is certainly a cut above most other gritty cop dramas, hardly surprising since it was written by James Elroy, the master of the genre. If you haven't read 'American Tabloid', go out and get it. I'd say it's genre defining, it's that good. Like many like all the big Hollywood stars, Keanu almost always plays himself, which serves him well playing edgy, emotionally spent Detective Tom Ludlow. Forest Whitaker is absolutely brilliant, probably the best role he's had since 'Ghost Dog'. He's fantastic to watch in the riveting, final scene, I think there's great chemistry between Whitaker and Reeves. I loved the snappy, 'street jive' type dialogue, and much of the story is quite believable, if somewhat convoluted, but never contrived or boring. Like another reviewer said, I think it sort of comes together a bit quick at the end, I would've enjoyed another 20 mins to flesh the story out a bit more. Hey, I could watch this stuff all day, it's that good. Yet again, the critics are clueless, 'Street Kings' is a really entertaining film, highly recommended.