The movie is centered around a passionate film geek “Brad Zhul” played by Daniel Bartkewicz and his movie review website that has so much authority that it can influence Hollywood, think power to the little people. The portrayal of the webmaster come film critic is spot on and resonates with everyone here at independent film reviews, though sometimes a little over the top.

“Spoiler Alert is a black comic/revenge tale from first-time feature filmmaker David Rakowiecki (pronounced Ra-cow-ski). Itʼs about Brad, the operator of a movie scoop website and Harrison, a down on his luck film director who has squandered his artistic abilities in pursuit of easy paydays. One night Harrison shows up on Bradʼs doorstep looking to exact revenge upon him because he feels Brad and his website have ruined his career. Chinese food, movie geek talk and murder ensue.”

The scene is set, and stays that way throughout, inside a small basement cave – a movie making tactic that hasn’t worked in a very long time, or at least as long as I can remember. The director uses hand held camera work and scene cutaways which help with the flow and overall feel of this film which everyone here at IFR thoroughly enjoyed.

Spoiler Alert deals with something we discuss here on a regular basis, how do you deal with a bad film when you have so much influence at your disposal and you know your review can help make or break that movies chance of success? I’m just thankful right now I actually loved this film and could write an honest review without a knock on the door from the disgruntled director!

For a basically “one scene movie” with virtually no score, Rakowiecki keeps things moving along with some unexpected plot twists and turns that managed to keep us all entertained, when the pace began to slow, another twist comes along at almost exactly the right time, great directing overall and kudos to the camera operators for some stellar hand held work.

Well – no bad reviews over here, or spoilers for that matter. We all thought Spoiler Alert was one of the most well polished, best acted and well written indie flicks we’ve received in a long time. Unfortunately we get a lot of junk sent our way and unlike Brad, we try and stray away from negative reviews, you just never know who will be knocking on your door!

Get your hands on a copy and see for yourself. 7/10

User Submitted by Peter Jacobsen

It’s Giuliani’s New York. Peep shows are being cleaned out of Times Square; boom boxes and graffiti have become public enemies. Luke Shapiro (Josh Peck) has just graduated high school. In the span of this one summer between his parents’ apartment and his college dorm room he will experience a myriad of life’s firsts.

Set on the Upper East Side, “The Wackness”, is a new twist on the common coming of age theme. “What new twists?” you ask. Well, while many of us had a summer job, I don’t know anyone who sold marijuana out of an ice cream pushcart.

Luke does his part to keep New York City the way many non-New Yorkers envision it. He plays a soundtrack of early 90’s rap on his walk-man as he sells drugs to Manhattanites. Luke trades drugs and candid conversation with his Therapist, Dr. Squires played by Ben Kingsley.

The relationship between Luke and Dr. Squires takes on new meaning as the doctor gives Luke frank advice about living in the moment and enjoying his youth through sex and drug use. His advice comes back to bite him though when Luke begins a relationship with his stepdaughter, Stephanie (Olivia Thirlby). We watch Luke grow and learn the lessons we all had to learn the hard way. I felt a connection with the main character as he described his place in the striated society of an American High School’s population.

Director and writer, Jonathan Levine, does an excellent job getting his audience involved with his characters. Each one was developed with enough texture to make us care about the events in their lives. The addition of some offbeat talent (cameos by Method Man and an Olsen twin) made for a unique cast that did a great job with their acting duties. The general feel of the city and the time period came through to the audience on an appropriate level. This type of movie has the potential to become a kitschy rendition of what it is trying to portray. “The Wackness” did not come off in that manner. Much of the credit for this accurate rendition must be given to the music. I enjoyed the soundtrack immensely and it brought me back to my days listening to A Tribe Called Quest and Notorious B.I.G. The music really set the tone for the entire movie.

If you are a 30 to 35-year-old man who grew up in America, you will have an immediate attachment to many of the themes in this movie. I’m sure you will root for Luke in his final throws of adolescence. While he’s no Holden Caulfield, Luke does a good job as an anti-hero that we can relate to.

Best line (that is not representative of the rest of the dialog): “I got mad love for you, Shorty. That’s on the real. I like… I wanna like listen to Boys II Men when I’m with you.” – Luke Shapiro

Earthlings is mostly consisted of undercover footage from slaughterhouses, animal testing facilities, breeding farms / puppy mills and circuses. The underlying message;

“ignorance is bliss, if we don’t want to know where our food and clothing comes from we can turn a blind eye or choose to ignore the truth all together to morally justify our consumption, usage and treatment of the animals who unwillingly gave their lives for it. “

I’ll be brutally honest. Before watching this film I was possibly one of the most ignorant people on the planet when it came to eating meats, mocking protesters, animal rights activists and vegetarians/vegans. I was close minded and living in a world of ignorance and denial.

This documentary opened my eyes to what I already knew happened in the world we live in. It forced me, or should I say, I forced myself to get a deeper understanding of the unimaginable pain and suffering these animals endure in order to feed our insatiable appetite.

I’ve never been so emotionally distraught whilst watching anything on my screen. Ever. I struggled the entire film and covered my eyes or just looked away during the vast majority of it. I found myself cursing the abusers, getting angry at the humans who seemingly enjoy this miss treatment of animals. The films message is a harsh look at the reality of our society and culture and I strongly suggest you watch this film for yourselves and leave me some comments on your thoughts and feelings. The entire film is freely available for download all over the Internet, Here is a link to the Youtube version: Earthlings – The Documentary.

So – I was feeling sorry for my love life one night, and decided to make it worse and watch a romantic comedy (or, “romcom”, as the hip name-compressing media who brought us gems like “Bennifer” and “Brangelina” has repackaged it). “He’s Just Not That Into You” happened to be recently released on Xbox Live, so I thought, what the hey – they’re all the sip-sappy same, right? Au Contraire! Although HJNTIY was predictable, it wasn’t “traditionally” predictable. That is, not everybody has a traditionally happy ending. As an insighful, amusing romcom, I give it 3.75/5 stars.

The cast is wholesomely good-looking, and Ben Affleck should really be played by Paul Rudd, but the chemistry between he and Jennifer Aniston is pretty funny. Drew Barrymore seems to be playing somebody just because she produced it and not because it’s a good part for her. I do like her but I kinda cringed at this role, to be honest. The outtakes at the end reveal who is good at character improv (cough, Aniston, cough) and who is seriously not (ah-Connelly-choo!). Did I mention Scarlett Johansson gets kinda naked? And plays a yoga instructor (but doesn’t do a single yoga pose in the enitre movie, wtf)?

At the heart of the movie is Gigi, the girl waiting by the phone and utterly hopeless to the ways of men. She is the progeny of the generations of lies women tell themselves (and their girlfriends) about men’s behavior and a genetic defect in reading blatant social cues. Pretty, sweet, and annoyingly desperate, Ginnifer Goodwin is brilliantly convincing as the hopeless friend you simultaneously want to give a good shake and yet somehow keep telling her lies to make her feel better (”I’m sure he just lost your phone number…seriously!”). Her embarrassing trials become the platform for revealing the secrets behind the infamously bad behavior of men and why women put up with it. As we get to know the characters (who, predictably, are all in love with somebody who doesn’t love them back), wise “opposite-sex common sense” is unmasked and gently examined. The movie aims to ask: when we really know WHY somebody is acting the way they are, why do we delude ourselves into believing otherwise, and why do our support networks and culture actually encourage it? The arrived-at answers involve a few pretty good truth nuggets concerning human psychology and people’s secret obsession with their own life-dramas.

Ultimately I thought it was a pretty good reflection of cliched romance woes in today’s western culture, and how cultural norms and societal pressures can make us conform and confuse good behavior, honorable intentions, and what it really means to be happy. Even though the movie appears to embrace the non-threatening route of examining the relationship woes of just women, it actually sneaks in an acurate critique of men’s woes as well, and rounds out with the obligatory comedic-relief nod to gay romance.

Basically – don’t go see this movie on a booty-call date. It will probably make you uncomfortable. Also, do not go see this movie with: somebody you’re about to dump, somebody who’s about to dump you, somebody you’re cheating on or who is cheating on you, an ex, or somebody you really like who’s, well, just not that into you. Everybody else is ok.

User Submitted Review By: Katie McKelley

The film has some dramatic moments, like when entertainment lawyer Marilyn Marsden confronts her ex-lover and his new boyfriend.  It also includes several laugh out loud scenarios including deluded Ashley pouring her heart out to her sex addict lover, Todd.

Three stories run parallel over a period of time in the film and all come together in the dramatic climax.

The writers made me care about the characters and left me wanting more so I would have to give this film a big thumbs up.

User Review Submitted By: Aaron Kreider

Well, phase 2 of operation IFR relaunch is to ask you, our loyal readers and subscribers to submit your own movie reviews for print on this site!

Now, why would you want to do that? well, this site recieves a huge amount of organic search traffic (close to 50,000 unique page views per month) and it’s an excellent way to get your writing skills infront of a large audiance.

Also, we are approached by independent film makers on a daily basis asking to send us screeners or pre release DVD’s they would like reviewing. This has become so popular that we’re currently about 15 movies behind and we’re looking for more people we can send these DVD’s to in return for a solid review.

Sound interesting? it gets better – for our new Editors we’re proposing an ad revenue split. We can monitor which reviews receive the most traffic and generate the most in advertising, If we can get some regular reviewers to help with the work load, We’ll split all ad revenue with the author 50/50.

Well, what are you waiting for? submit your reviews via the contact us form and if they are better than mine (an easy feat) they will be published within 24 hours.

Thanks for all your support and stay tuned for some amazing summer movie previews and reviews!

You know those movies you sit through where nothing happens for the first hour and ten miniutes? well, The Uninvited is one of those movies. It’s only saving grave was Elizabeth Banks, she gave a pretty solid performance dispite it being a  drab, stale and badly acted film.

One thing I couldn’t figure out was the character “Alex” played Arielle Kebbel – I thought it was Mandy Moore, in fact, I was so sure it was her (back from a time machine adventure or something) I placed a small wager with my wife, only to check IMDB after the movie had ended. Oh well, dishes for the next week I suppose…

Apparently this movie is a remake of a classic which I haven’t seen, though after this typical hollywood crime/drama/thriller/horror/snorefest I’m probably not going to bother with it as it will probably drudge up bad memories  of my two hours wasted watching this movie.

Something has been irking me with the last year or so of movies with teen lead actors. The “over acting” you know, when they go way OTT, facial expressions turn into “Cm’mon, you can nail this scene!!” you can just vision the 31 takes it took to get that look. What happened to natural talent and acting ability? Guess we have the Wayans brothers and co to thank for that. (Dance flick anyone?)

This movie was bad. Struggling to find a none offensive adjective so yeah, I’ll stick with “bad.” Don’t rent it, don’t get it On demand, don’t watch it if your sister inlaw loans you the DVD.  She’s giving it to you for a reason.

2/10

Then there is this British fellow I have never seen before who plays Sarah Marshall’s (Kristen Bell) new rock star boyfriend. His character has the most obnoxious name “Aldos Snow” which only adds to the vast amount of humor he brings to the film, I’d like to see a hell of a lot more of Russell Brand. He has a certain “Johnny Depp” humor about him if you will and he NAILED one of his lines that sent my husband and I into a roar of laughter.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a well acted, well written down right hilarious comedy. There are just enough surprises (brought mostly by Snow in my opinion) to keep this movie cracking along. A few sweet moments toward the end that make you love the characters that little bit more and finally an ending that is not only comical but completely satisfying as a plot wrap. I say go watch it, great date film perhaps even good to watch after a break up (this is NOT a chick flick). I give it an 8/10!

Great setting, good cast of characters, and a well translated from graphic novel onto cinema writing. For those of you who don’t know, this movie is based on the graphic novel created by Steve Niles. Although the setting is different in the comic series, the story translates even better onto screen….

We start off in this movie on the last day of sunlight in a small community in Alaska. We meet our hero of this film Sheriff Evan Oleson (played by Josh Hartnett) and partner Billy Kitka (played by Manu Bennett) investigating strange occurrences that are happening all over the community. Communication is cut, as well as all roadways already having been blocked for the 30 days of total night.

Things further get weird as a stranger somehow manages to make it into the town and cause havoc. Within the next few days, townsfolk end up getting killed off and mysteriously disappear. We are introduced to these creatures when Evan is viciously attacked by one of them. The vampires move about in a clan style way and are very well verse in hunting prey as you will see. They are given a primal hunting instinct with a bit of an immortal like intelligence that makes them deadly and scary at the same time. These are not your Anne Rice novel style vamps.

The rest of the movie moves like a chess game and each side is forced to move pawns, take risky maneuvers, as well as think ahead. The idea of their own humanity is even put to the test at most points (I will try my best not to give to much away because it is a pivotal moment). The vampires are terrifying and discourteous to the bitter end, showing no signs of relenting or letting anyone get out of this. Their sole purpose is to live and move on to do it again with the next town. Evan starts off as your average run of the mill hero, but due to drastic circumstances he becomes anything but. In his own words, “The things you do to save your own”. Stella also takes a more thoughtful heroine, taking care of the moral side of each character and trying to keep everyone sane and in check. As the days go on you really get a sense of desperation and hopelessness from the townsfolk that survive, and believe me they don’t survive for long. It all leads up to the 29th day when you get to see a wonderful ending that is filled with victory, defeat, happiness, and loss. I would highly recommend seeing this in the theaters if you can as the environment that is set in the film really envelops you with its isolation and freezing conditions. The terror scenes are done in great timing and the gore is kept to a fair amount that is just enough to shock you without going overboard or underwhelming. To David Slade I say great job. His efforts have put a smile on my face as well as a reassurance that horror films have not completely lost touch with actually feeding on the fears of the audience which most of today’s films have not been able to accomplish. He also worked with Stone temple Pilots doing the “Sour Girl Video” and is responsible for directing three of the many “Aphex Twin” videos (anyone that has ever seen these videos knows how great his imagination and creativity can go). So please, grab your significant other, pick up the big bag of popcorn, hide away your 20 oz bottles of pop/soda or water, and be prepared to feel the icy cold touch of 30 Days of Night!

I would highly recommend seeing this in the theaters if you can as the environment that is set in the film really envelops you with its isolation and freezing conditions. The terror scenes are done in great timing and the gore is kept to a fair amount that is just enough to shock you without going overboard or underwhelming. To David Slade I say great job. His efforts have put a smile on my face as well as a reassurance that horror films have not completely lost touch with actually feeding on the fears of the audience which most of today’s films have not been able to accomplish. He also worked with Stone temple Pilots doing the “Sour Girl Video” and is responsible for directing three of the many “Aphex Twin” videos (anyone that has ever seen these videos knows how great his imagination and creativity can go). So please, grab your significant other, pick up the big bag of popcorn, hide away your 20 oz bottles of pop/soda or water, and be prepared to feel the icy cold touch of 30 Days of Night! a very good 7/10!

The plot revolves around a Charlie, a dentist who was cursed as a child to never find love. Each time he sleeps with a woman she becomes destined to find the man of her dreams and get married. This leads to lots of very interesting sexual encounters….

Everything in this movie is very tounge in cheek. Expect to see:

• Lots of boobs
• Lots of vulgarities
• Lots of childish humor
• Drug use
• Steamy sex scenes
• Jessica Alba trying to act
• Dane Cooks body

Yes, thats right, Dane spends most of his time on camera nude, or semi nude while the most we see of Alba is a brief penguin panty shot! So dissapointing…

A lot of the humor in Good Luck Chuck falls flat on its face, similar to Cook’s stand up performances as of late. The supporting actor playing Charlie’s best friend (Dan Fogler) is quiet possibly the most obnoxious person I have ever seen in a movie. He delivers a great performance and really suits the characters role, I just find him incredibly irritating the entire movie.

I’d like to see more of this style of movie in this genre, preferably with better actors and dialog. Good Luck Chuck did an ok job and hopefully paved the way for some more adult themed romantic comedies. I’ll give it a 6/10. 

The plot is simple, an alcoholic hit man (Kingsley) botches a job due to his alcoholism, Is sent to San Fran to clean up his act and get into a program. Even telling some co-workers about the premise of the movie cracked a laugh. Its a very whitey movie, sometimes a little slow but definitely worth a watch….

One thing that did grab my attention was Lenoi’s role, I felt it was almost identical to the role she played in Fun with Dick and Jane, I really think they should have thought of that whilst casting, but she did a great job none the less.

Luke Wilson played a fabulous AA sponsor, Hes really grown on me over the years (check out Idiocracy) and brings much more to the table than his more One dimensional brother, Owen. (Except Behind Enemy Lines but that doesn’t count because it bombed.)

Dennis Farina played an outstanding role as the Irish mafia leader, He’s one of my favorite badguys of all time, You Kill Me is definitely one of his best roles, all be it a little small. Overall, the acting in this Indy film was very good, the casting was perfect, the plot with intertwining stories worked very well and it made me laugh out loud on several occasions.

Well worth the watch, check IFC for times. I’ll give You Kill Me a 7.5/10

Wahlberg did an excellent job in this none stop roller coaster action movie and is truly beginning to shine. I really love movies that portray a government as an evil entity as most of the time, this is completely true. As the story unravels, we’re introduced to the bad guys who we love to hate, but doesn’t Danny Glover look really old?

Almost everything about this movie is perfect. The cast, action sequences, cinematography and editing really emerge you into the twisting plot and the incredible dialog is just the icing on the cake, Another one of those movies you just don’t want to end.

The soundtrack was also magnificent and really fitting with the theme of the film, The drama although a little unrealistic at times, was nail biting stuff. I was very pleasantly surprised with shooter, I think you will be too. Mark Wahlberg is the next Bruce Willis.

I’ll give shooter a very admirable 8/10

While conducting experiments in a garage, Two brilliant engineers who lead double lives accidentally discover that there latest project allows them to travel back in time. Each mans curiosity leads to experiments without the other’s knowledge, some with serious consequences. (from the DVD cover) This is the most thought provoking, intelligent film I have ever seen…

The Acting is just mind blowing, It’s so refreshing seeing new faces on screen with real talent. The two lead males in this movie were simply fantastic. The dialog is beyond anything we’ve been treated too since some of Kubrick’s stuff in the early 2000s.

Its not often a movie comes around that forces you to think the unthinkable, solve incredible puzzles and blows you away with it’s smarts. This is one of those DVD’s anyone should have in there collection for so many reasons, Not only did it win the grand jury prize at the 2004 Sundance film festival, it became critically acclaimed world wide for being one of the most ambitious, clever and successful independent films of all time.

With that said I have no hesitation in giving Primer a mind-blowing 9/10 Easily being my favorite Sci-Fi Movie of all time.

Now from my understanding, this isn’t a true Grindhouse movie, Yes, there’s grainy, clunky editing and what not, but it just feels like an ordinary Tarantino movie.

There are many, many scenes in Deathproof that just seemed to last forever with absolutely no bearing on the plot, character development, or anything else for that matter. I was really disappointed – about half of the movie in fact is complete filler, I really expected more. The opening box office weekend was a bit of a disaster, only taking in $4.2m… Thats less than half of the budget for the entire film! The dialog and script were -ok- Again, I think I just had high expectations. The acting was very decent, Tarantino’s cameo was great (as usual) Mary Elizabeth Winstead played a very fine “Ditzy cheerleader” and looked stunning on screen. The majority female cast all had great chemistry and worked well together.

Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t bored with Deathproof, The acting and twisting plot were more than enough to keep me entertained, The scenes were aesthetically pleasing, even the seemingly endless banter scenes worked well and flowed.

Overall, this movie was just not on par with Planet terror. I’d give Deathproof a not as good as expected: 7/10

This movie was a little better than Deathproof (review coming soon!) purely because it was action packed… never a dull moment, unlike Deathproof – Planet terror kept a solid flow and managed to keep me completely entertained. Lots of big names, Bruce Willis, Tarantino, Freddy Rodríguez to name a few – The casting for this film was spot on.

One thing I have to complain about is the editing. I understand grind house and its effect but, I felt it went way over the top on many occasions. Slightly nauseating even at one point. A basic plot outline: Chemical / biological weapons being traded on the black market. The chemical is released causing zombie like mutations – worldwide. The lead actress, Rose McGowan (known mostly for her role in Charmed, the popular TV series) does a great job of playing Go-Go dancer turned bad ass action hero and Freddy Rodríguez really brings home the kung-fu-gun-expertiese, Ex military bad boy persona.

The direction was excellent, some of the cinematography was incredibly believable and awe inspiring. The humor was off the wall. I absolutely loved the intro “Machete” sequence, pure genius. If your a fan of grindhouse or zombie movies, you have too see this movie, expect plenty of gore, lots of blood splatter on the camera and incredibly erratic action scenes.

There is also an abundance of tantalizing female flesh that should appeal to almost every male on the planet. (wow does Fergie look good in this film!)

A well deserved 8/10.

The movie tried to grasp the philosophical reason as to why this all was happening. Linda talks to a priest but there is no indication of her religion prior to or after that scene. A lot of this plot just happened for seemingly no reason at all. There were a lot of filler scenes I found to be completely irrelevant to the movie. *Spoilers follow*……

Example: Linda asks “If I let Jim die, is that the same as killing him?” There was no wonderful insight given just some shallow talk of fate and destiny.Undoubtedly the worst scene of the movie was at the funeral when there was a mishap with the coffin causing her husbands severed head to come bouncing out on to the road. What were they thinking? Perhaps they were still pondering the philosophical questions raised above, or maybe they just didn’t realize how ridiculous the scene actually was.

As the movie continues we are faced with more and more twists that seem to do nothing except to drag out the length of the movie. There is an unknown blonde at the funeral. One of the Linda’s daughters suddenly has severe cuts on her face. And lest we forget, the dead bird in the backyard.

Difficult to follow and incredibly confusing and/or pointless at times, I’d give Premonition a 6/10

When asked to check out this new independent film, obviously we jumped at the chance, a free DVD screener, who wouldn’t? We were incredibly anxious for its delivery via fed-ex so, whilst waiting eagerly on the front porch for its arrival, we did a little research. (thank you Wi-Fi!)

So it seems the people behind the new movie “Outsourced” are very ballsey. If you didn’t already know, they opted to distribute the movie themselves, via there website and select theaters. I love this attitude and fighting spirit, future Indy film producers, take note.

Now, onto the review.

From the opening sequence you can tell that this movie means business. Some stunning cinematography and gorgeous shots of downtown Seattle accompanied by a pretty stellar soundtrack, This movie takes no time at all getting started. We’re introduced to Josh Hamilton playing Todd Anderson. A customer service/sales manager. This guy is great, I don’t know why we haven’t seen a lot more of him. He’s done some notable TV but I think once his performance in this movie gets picked up, he will be in a lot more demand.

The plot quickly unfolds and leads Todd on a trip half way around the world to train at a new Indian call center. Pretty basic stuff, right to the point, no time wasted. Just how I like my movies.

The lead actress, Ayesha Dharker playing Asha, an Indian call center employee, looks absolutely stunning on camera, there is something about her smile, it just lights up the screen. The casting for this movie, in a nutshell, is perfect. The characters being played are so believable, charismatic and charming, there chemistry is intoxicating. This is one of those films where it just all comes together perfectly and is a real pleasure to watch.

Now, the topic of this movie is one I feel very strongly about – Outsourcing work overseas. You can read and discuss more on this over in the forums. I think the movie did a amazing job in bringing these two completely different cultures together, without potentially angering people due to the nature of the subject and the history between the two. To me, it was an honest, humorous look at what is actually happening in the world, completely balanced in its opinions, never going to far. Two very big thumbs up, nicely done.

The romance is just simply adorable. It’s very rare I seen a movie where the characters just look and feel so good together. The Humor, although a little over the top at times, was of the laugh out loud caliber.

Something else I really enjoyed was the subtle lessons in middle eastern religion and beliefs. Not often a movie teaches you new things, especially when presented in a humorous way. Looking back, I now know more about India than I think I ever did, some of its heritage, religion and its customs. Genius!

I don’t think I will say this again in the next six months, but – go and buy this movie. If your lucky enough to have it show in your city – go and see this movie. If you cannot get out, nor afford a copy for yourself, spread the word. digg/stumble this review, visit there website, tell your friends… The more we support our independent film producers, the more of these quality films they can give us.

Such a charming, delightful – will watch again soon – 9/10.

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Grandmother used to say that if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all, dearie–but she also believed my face my get stuck like that and in the healing power of crystals, so I’m going to say some un-nice things about Zombie Honeymoon (2004). Sorry, grandma. Don’t turn in your grave or leave it and make me shoot you in the brainpan…

The film’s story is one similar to Dead Alive’s of helping and hiding undead loved ones but without the brilliance of Peter Jackson directing, writing pratfalls, or being generally humorous and gory. Premise of Zombie Honeymoon being, husband dies on honeymoon because some dead guy, maybe a zombie (how? it’s unexplained) walks up from the ocean and pukes some kinda black unctuous fluid (what? also unexplained) into hubby’s mouth (why? again unexplained) killing him but also providing apparently the source of his renewed life as a flesh-hungry, slowly rotting zombie (yes, the characters do use the z-word despite violating genre conventions). Wife witnesses husband eating a guy and is understandably appalled. Then she’s not. Then she thinks continuing with their irrational plans earlier in the film of moving to Portugal (you’ve got me, probably based on director’s “true story,” addressed below) might make things better (wtf’s are appropriate here). In the end, undead hubby is about to eat wifey or maybe spit the de- and re-vivifying black stuff into her mouth when instead he projectile phlegms it across the kitchen, saving her life and leaving us wondering what the black stuff could be and why it was going to be vomited then and there. Regaining the power of speech suddenly for these last words which I feel better if he also speaking as a proxy for the director, husband says, “I’m sorry.” Thus endeth the movie.

The acting is less believable than the plot.

Apparently this is based on a true story of writer/director David Gebroe’s sister’s fiancé dying. Yeah? If you ever hear this caveat in a writers’ workshop, do like Mission to Burma and reach for your revolver. Headshots should kill the conversation. Point being, true stories don’t make it a good story. True stories adapted to bad romantic zombie films also make for bad film. Maybe my grandmother’s saying holds true with a few minor substitutions: If you can’t make a decent zombie film, don’t make one at all.

In a scale of one to a hundred, I give this negative 83 minutes of my life.

So I’m guessing this would be around a 2/10

I found myself riveted on the screen and nothing could distract me as the story and character development unfolded. Like any film review you don’t want to take anything away from the person yet to see it but I can say it’s one hell of a climax…

Not often a film leaves you with your mouth wide open, this one did. I’d associated with one particular character in an extremely negative way throughout, as we all do in society, only to find the power of empathy at the end. Now that is some achievement and sadly something that isn’t done too often.

Most definitely in my top 100 and deserving of a 9/10

I’m still in shock I managed to sit through all 81 minutes of it. This sham of a crime / drama movie needs to be taken off any shelves and burned in a large open field so the stench of crap doesn’t pollute anything else….

I’m not even going to give you a basic plot outline for this one, nor list any of the flaws in this movie, what I am going to do is give it a rating of 2/10 and hope the rest of you don’t waste those precious 81 minutes of your life as I did. Horrible Horrible movie.

Expect to see an awful lot of blood, big Hollywood explosions and even a few ninjas! Jet Li was almost boring to watch this time around, His characters are always the same, his acting is dull and he is incapable of creating any on-screen chemistry with whoever he’s working with. This is a mans film. They should serve beer and nachos during it. It’s exactly what you would expect from looking at the movie poster, long drawn out sword fights with plenty of banter in between, some great car chases and even some of the most random boobs I’ve ever seen in a movie, not that I am complaining, they were quiet remarkable boobs.

If you want a guys night in and there is no Football on the TV, grab yourself a copy of War, some cold beers and your set for around 90 minutes of what us guys like best(!).

If your looking for a decent movie with a believable storyline, solid acting, great cinematography and fluffy bunnies, this movie is most certainly not for you. I’ll give War a not so impressive 5/10 (would have been a 4 but the random boobs saved the day)

About 90% of this movie was filmed with hand held cams. The in your face, 12 cuts per second editing add to the suspense and drama. Normally I’m not a fan of this style of direction (refer to Michael Bay’s Transformer action sequences) But It works flawlessly setting the pace for this movie.

Lets talk about the cinematography, This film is stunning. Shot on location in London, Madrid and New York, The wide angled shots of the most popular scenery to the slick “zoom-in” aerial photography added to this movies arsenal of visual appeal.

The Score was magnificent, from the somba Spanish drum rhythms to the underground Techno from New York, this film has it all.

Although some of the fight scenes were over edited, the fact that the movie held the same flow throughout and kept a ridiculously fast pace for 2 hours is an incredible achievement in my eyes. I don’t recall ever being so immersed in a movie hoping for it to never end…

The acting was what has become expected of these huge name A-list stars and everyones performances was right on the money. I didn’t see a single letdown in this movie. Nothing, for me, this is the easiest 9/10 I think I will ever give. you must see this movie.

1. Night of the Living Dead (1968, George A. Romero). Flesh eating slowpokes stopped only by destroying the brain, cinematic gore, nudity, low-budget Italian horror films, and the synthesized rockin’ stylings of Europe’s own Goblins—none might have ever come into being without this seminal horror film with the classic, improvised line, “Yeah, they’re dead. They’re all messed up.” This film turned the genre on its head, revolutionizing the mandates of final morals in horror films. It offered a critique family norms and the saccharine boy-girl loves stories of the time and even racial prejudices in a film about dead cannibals (the word “zombie” nowhere used in this first film) the same year that Oliver! won Best Picture….. Little known fact off the top of the dome: Richard Matheson novel I am Legend served as inspiration for Romero and Russo’s writing. I am Legend has been adapted to the screen three times, first with Vincent Price in The Last Man on Earth (1964), then with Charleston Heston in Omega Man (1971), and most recently Will Smith in the upcoming I am Legend (2007). Rarer fact, the Dead Trilogy ended with the third film Day of the Dead (also being remade); Land of the Dead, despite popular conception, is no the fourth film of a quadrilogy but, rather, a piece of crap.

2. Touch of Evil (1958, Orson Welles). America’s most amazing tub o’ lard not only adapts for screen and directs but, as he was wont to do, stars in this black and white film with the best openings (finally restored) ever put to celluloid. Welles even gained weight for the role if memory serves correct, which, like De Niro after Raging Bull will affirm, is a horrible idea. But the fat suit so common to our generation’s privileged excesses in movie making was not invented until Mrs. Doubtfire (a little known and patently untrue fact) and digital effects at the time meant finger puppets. This movie’s also great for its final line delivered by Marlene Dietrich (“But what does it matter what we say about people.”) and for Charlton Heston’s inadvertent strides to ending blackface in film.

3. Psycho (1960, Alfred Hitchcock). If you didn’t get enough of Janet Leigh during the not-so-graphic rape scene of potheads bopping to Bop (or some subgenre of funky jazz) in Touch of Evil, then you can see more (and almost a nipple) two years later in Psycho’s risqué shower scene. More than the iris-drain match cut or the great use of dolly and stairs and overhead camera shots and Anthony Perkins as one sexy lead male, the pacing of this film’s magic. In a seen not even halfway into the film, the first-billed starlet dies just as we were eroticizing her, and so the story suddenly shifts from robbery movie to slasher. That’s what makes this a top-ten film and a marker of film history, though the cinematography helps. As Van Sant proved, you can’t make a better film, even if you shoot it shot-for-shot.

4. The Wild Bunch (Sam Peckinpah, 1969). Like Touch of Evil, this Western set in the closed frontier has the best opening of any film (proving that the best not only means #1 but also that there’s room enough in a Top 10 List to share being the best). And a great buddy film and, more subtly, a great anti-Vietnam War movie with its WWI parallels, making Ernest Borgnine’s line (“Giving your word don’t count. It’s who you give it to.”) as inspiring words to live by as Touch of Evil’s final lines are to die by.

5. Dog Day Afternoon (Sidney Lumet, 1975). Another great buddy film with amazing characters such as Sal (played by John Cazale who just looks funny), the protagonist’s partner in the movie’s bank robbery, who thinks Montana’s a foreign country (who knew it was still a state?). While its characters are comedic, they’re treated humanely—even Sonny’s (sexy, young Al Pacino) surprise “wife”—with cries of Attica from the (out of the closets, into the) streets. And for whatever it’s worth and whatever the term means, it’s “based on a true story.” And its ending with Sonny pressed up against the hood the police car has the same effect as the endings of Wild Bunch (freeze frame and bullets), Psycho (the fly on Bates’ hand), Touch of Evil (Welles somehow managing to float, Dietrich’s line), and, how can we forget, Night of the Living Dead (whitey’s mistake and the series of documentary photos).

6. Brazil (Terry Gil, 1985). Another great ending (if you skip the unsuccessful original release version that thankfully, like Blade Runner’s, is all but obsolete) and opening sequence (mother pushing a strolling past a store’s storefront display of televisions that explode) and, by far, Gilliam’s best work with a look (aside from the dream sequences) that’s amazing, proving you don’t need a large budget as long as you have an imagination, dolly, and long corridor to redecorate and reshoot. You might remember Terry as the naked pianist in or as animator for Monty Python. I’d like to remember him for this film.

7. Alphaville (Jean-Luc Godard, 1965). Because Goddard’s parody of the single genres, like Une Femme est une Femme’s of the romantic comedy and Contempt’s of a love story, are spot on in their inversion of conventions, I have to reward the risk he takes trying to combine science fiction with the hardboiled. Unlike Dark City, there’s no big gimmick. The film’s just the dreamlike reality of film’s own unreality. So what if he fails? It’s still better than David Lynch’s nonsense, most of Bresson’s meditative films, and better than anything Truffaut was shooting at the time. These are, people, the ten best films of all time, you know, what you’d take on a deserted island that had a climate controlled theater. You’ve gotta take one that you can watch over and over again for its flaws.

8. His Girl Friday (Howard Hawks, 1940). A movie that proves that there was once a time when movie actors could walk and talk at the same time. Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell putting on one hell of a show. An excellence taste of Howard Hawks’ no-nonsense sensibilities in filmmaking before he met John Wayne and the two were married by the House Un-American Activities.

9. Miller’s Crossing (Coen Brothers, 1990). I wouldn’t trust a top ten list by anyone born after 1975 that didn’t include at least one Coen Brothers’ flick. They’re masters of the fisheye close-up and pacing for comedic effect (see kid stealing the toupee), and while Hudsucker Proxy does rank a close second for its firecracker dialogue, His Girl Friday takes Proxy’s cake (and Hudsucker Proxy lacks Coen Brother mainstay John Turturro, who’s great throughout Miller’s crossing as the slime ball malinger who knows the angles). The movie’s intricate, full of turns, and warrants two watchings to keep up, then two more to appreciate what you were too busy the first two times to see. Plus, it combines and adapts two Dashiell Hammett novels. ‘Nuff said.

Wait, wait, you might be saying to yourself or saying aloud for somehow thinking I can hear you (like the winners in darken theaters who think the person projected on the screen can hear you say, Oh, no, don’t…), there’s only NINE. That’s something new I’m trying out. I’m calling it the Thomas Ten. It’s like a baker’s dozen, but instead of getting one more, I gyp you one less (apologies to gypsies; I love Emir Kusturica’s films). Besides, I think I’ve covered most my basis through time and genre, so I’m curious what I’ve forgotten. 2001: A Space Odyssey? Should that really replace Alphaville? Looking back, I regret not having von Trier’s The Element of Crime or Scorsese’s Taxi Driver.

But instead of expecting more from me, a stranger, maybe you should give some of yourself back and help your fellow humans out by making your own Top 10 with a full nine plus one. Who knows, maybe if you do there’ll be an extra doughnut next time you buy a box.

* Please be advised that the films categorized under Definitive, All-Time Worldwide Top Ten Movies Independent of Time or Place are not listed in preferential order. Though each was individually chosen by unanimous decision this morning while I pretended to check email at work, this list is not exhaustive and is subject to modification due to the vagaries of its sole author, Thomas Logan. Additionally, this list may not adhere to the strict metric system of numbering. Last and definitely least, the absence of other caveats and stipulations should not indicate their absence.

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A journalist investigates a series of murders that follows the discovery of an unpublished novel by Charles Dickens in the cellar of an old Thames pub. Gradually he becomes obsessed with unraveling a century-old murder in the pages of the manuscript. Only when he has done so, with the help of a mysterious beach-combing tramp who stalks the Thames foreshore, is he able to solve the modern murders

There are some really nice touches bringing the 19^th century into the 21^st and vice versa, some of which might not strike you at the time. The story revolves around a lost manuscript of Charles Dickens, cleverly revealed throughout the course of the film. Derek Jacobi’s handling of two characters is pretty impressive, while Vinny Jones gets on with solving the riddles. There are plenty of unexpected twists and turns to keep the viewer entertained. It’s certainly not a blockbuster but a pleasant film nevertheless. User Review Rating: 6/10

There are so many things I liked about Knocked Up, I’m not even going to list what I didn’t. Seth is heavily relied upon to produce most of the laughs in this film and he handles it well. His character is lovable and incredibly charismatic. He has excellent on screen chemistry with Katherine Heigl, their developing story line is captivating and incredibly entertaining….

The supporting cast all play an important role, Jonah Hill is becoming one of my favorite “Teen funny guys” after his roles in Accepted, Knocked up and the more recent Superbad.

Overall this movie delivers everything it sets out too, romance, humor, drama and scenarios a lot of us can relate too. I give Knocked up a rock solid 8.5/10

Cillian Murphy looks stunning on screen, this guy has a bright future. He’s already done some notable films but I think this is the role he will be remembered for.

So, we’re in the future, the sun is dying and the existance of humanity rests in 5 peoples hands. A ship containing a large nuclear bomb is sent on a daring mission to the sun in an attempt to “jump start” it. Unbelievable right? The special effects and sets are incredible, although the plot goes against everything I believe in as a regular Joe with common sense and more than 8 braincells, they way the movie is presented the scenario becomes almost believeable.

The action is terrific, the cast is perfect, the story and direction are the best I have seen in any Sci-Fi movie in years, even if your not a Sci-Fi fan I highly recommend checking this movie out, you wont be sorry. A radiant, cosmic 8.5/10

1408 is a hotel room number, cursed, haunted and the ideal place to send a cynical writer of ghostly stuff. Expect lots of special effects, in my opinion already done to death in previous King type outings; and a standard twist.

I do appreciate horror fans out there will enjoy the film, I’m sorry I’m just not one of them. User review: 6/10

Not so Mr Brooks. You don’t want to give too much away when you review a film because it always takes away any surprise elements for the viewer, but let’s just say this is Costner in a role not seen before…

Mr Brooks is quite a suspenseful thriller with some juicy twists. Well cast, very well played and leaves you with plenty to think about. User review: 7/10