Nano Film Review #11 -- Prince Caspian

I'm just going to cut to the chase:

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian was amazing.

It was more intense than the first film, and younger children may be disturbed by that. Violence has series consequences in this movie. So do mistakes. And our four heroes make some serious mistakes.

But the movie itself is beautiful. And the themes and messages in the movie, well, they're there if you're looking for them.

I was a little worried about this movie, though. The first one was, to me, really well done. All the things I like about the first movie were in this one, only better. (I am hoping for an extended edition, though.)

So, Speed Racer is going to be kicked to the curb by Narnia. Too bad, I liked Speed Racer. It'll be interesting to see how Iron Man holds up this weekend. People are predicting Narnia to knock it out of the top slot. Next weekend sees the new Indiana Jones movie. How will the Narnians fare against the man with the whip?

~ Ben

Nano Film Review #9 and 10 -- Iron Man and Speed Racer

Summer's off to a great start. I saw Iron Man on tis opening day and caught Speed Racer last night. Here' my thoughts:

Iron Man -- Everything that was promised in the trailer was given and then some. Robert Downey, Jr.'s Tony Stark was a likable jerk, a flawed man who has everything he wants except a reason for being. His character changes over the course of the film, but never becomes perfect. It's a fast moving film that follows a natural course. It's got flare and attitude and spectacle and awesome performances all around. The effects were seamless and the CGI blended nicely with real life. There were only a few times that the effects were slightly off, and the only reason I noticed was because the rest of the time it was flawless. Awesome movie.

Speed Racer -- The Speed Racer movie is actually a trilogy. Take the time to analyze it -- you'll see three separate storylines, three separate calls to action, three separate rising actions, three separate resolutions. Three separate and complete story arcs and character arcs for Speed. It's like they decided to do the trilogy in one movie . . . just in case they didn't get a chance to do the trilogy. This movie is the opposite of Iron Man -- the effects are very noticeable -- purposely so. But it's fun, full of energy, and has a message. Unlike the complicated and heavy Matrix movies (from the same directors), Speed Racer is a simple movie with a simple message . . . but it lays it out simply, in the simple plot, making it much more effective. Awesome movie. I loved it. And I've only seen one Speed Racer episode in my whole life . . . on Sunday, so I could at least have some background.

It's looking to be a great summer. Next up: Prince Caspian. Indiana Jones and Hulk and Clone Wars and Hellboy and . . . whoa.

~ Ben