Saw VI:
Another October, another Saw film. Â I saw the first one and liked it. Â I even saw the second. Â I’ve yet to see the third, fourth, or fifth, so I clearly can’t see number six in the theater. Â Also, I’m not a big fan of the uber-gore torture films. Â The only interest I have in the Saw series at this point is the base plot and how they tie together. Â I can get that from Wikipedia.
Amelia:
I didn’t get a chance to see a screening of this one, but it interests me in the same way that all movies about historical people do. The cast looks great, and while I won’t be running off to see this at the theater, I’ll be eagerly awaiting the release on DVD so I can rent it.
Cirque du Freak – The Vampire’s Assistant:
Oh great… another vampire movie. At least its not Twilight, which I finally saw and thought was awful. But this movie has potential. First, it doesn’t take itself too seriously, so you shouldn’t either. The actors are all hamming it up pretty well, so you should join them as you romp through this tale together. Its fun, maybe not worth full price, but probably worth a matinee or early bird showing. I just hope that if the series continues it remains this light and fun.
Astro Boy:
The character has been around for over 50 years, and while I had seen the image now and then I have never read any of the manga or other comics or seen any of the TV shows or movies. Going in to this film, all I knew was “Astro Boy is a robot.” So the direction the movie took was quite startling to me. Toby, the son of Dr. Tenma, is killed in a horrible accident, and the doctor, being a grieving robotics genius, builds himself a replacement son using the latest technology and the boy’s DNA. Tenma quickly learns that this robot is not actually his son, and that having the boy-bot around is just a painful reminder of his loss. The boy runs away, then is hunted, and eventually winds up on the surface below… oh, did I forget to mention they all lived in a floating utopia called Metro City? Yeah, and the world below them is little more than where they dump their garbage, at least that’s what they think. Astro finds new friends among the surface dwellers, but he won’t be safe for long as the President of Metro City is looking for the power source that is running the boy robot. I thought the animation of this film was superb, and the voice acting was great, but really it is the story that knocks this movie out of the park. I found myself at the edge of my seat, drawn in to this world and caring about Astro Boy. Not since The Iron Giant have I cared so much about a robot, and while Astro Boy isn’t quite up to that level of greatness, it is great film. Go see it.