My Movie Reviews

Release Date: 15 October 2008
Time: 2 hr 20 min
Distributor:
Rating:
My Rating: PG-13
Starring: Light Yagami, L
Grade: B+

Synopsis: The series is about Light Yagami, a young man who resents the crime and corruption in the world. His life undergoes a drastic change when he discovers a mysterious notebook, known as the "Death Note", lying on the ground. The Death Note's instructions claim that if a person's name is written within it while picturing that person's face, that person shall die. Light is initially skeptical of the notebook's authenticity, but after experimenting with it, he realizes that the Death Note is real. After meeting with the previous owner of the Death Note, a shinigami named Ryuk, Light seeks to become "the God of the New World" by passing his judgement on those he deems to be evil or who get in his way.

My Review: Sequel to the first film. It continues the store of Light and L and their battle. This film begins to change quite a bit from the Anime and it ends quite differently. I realize that they had to do this or the film would have never ended.

Recommend: Definitely if you watched the first one. Don't watch it otherwise because you won't understand half of what's going on. Oh yeah, rumor has it that these films are being redone in Hollywood. We'll see if that really is the case. See here.

Release Date: 20 May 2008
Time: 2 hr 5 mins
Distributor:
Rating:
My Rating: PG-13
Starring: Light Yagami, L
Grade: B+

Synopsis: The series is about Light Yagami, a young man who resents the crime and corruption in the world. His life undergoes a drastic change when he discovers a mysterious notebook, known as the "Death Note", lying on the ground. The Death Note's instructions claim that if a person's name is written within it while picturing that person's face, that person shall die. Light is initially skeptical of the notebook's authenticity, but after experimenting with it, he realizes that the Death Note is real. After meeting with the previous owner of the Death Note, a shinigami named Ryuk, Light seeks to become "the God of the New World" by passing his judgement on those he deems to be evil or who get in his way.

My Review: This movie is based on a very well known Anime series of the same name. I saw the anime series before seeing this version, and like most things the anime was better. However, they did a good job of putting these films together. A couple of things that I didn't think were so great were the shinigamis as they looked really tacky. Also, too much swearing. They translated this, so why did they leave it all in? I thought that L was done very well and he brought a lot to his role. I also really enjoyed Light's little sister and she made the film more enjoyable.

Recommend: If you don't have the patience to watch the anime, then you should check this film out. This isn't really for children as it would be a little too scary for them. If you want to watch this, then I have the links to the movie online. You probably won't find it otherwise.

Release Date: 10 June 2005
Time: 1 hr 59 min
Distributor: Buena Vista Home Entertainment
Rating: PG
My Rating: PG
Starring: Christian Bale, Jean Simmons
Grade: B+

Synopsis: Hayao Miyazaki, the Japanese animation director who wowed audiences worldwide with his award-winning film Spirited Away, brings another visually spectacular tale of imagination to the screen. Sophie is an 18-year-old girl who toils in the hat shop opened years ago by her late father. Often harassed by local boys, one day Sophie is unexpectedly befriended by Howl, a strange but flamboyant wizard whose large home can travel under its own power. However, the Witch of the Waste is displeased with Sophie and Howl's budding friendship, and turns the pretty young woman into an ugly and aged hag. Sophie takes shelter in Howl's castle, and attempts to find a way to reverse the witch's spell with the help of Calcifer, a subdued but powerful demon who exists in the form of fire, and Markl, who protects the four-way door which can instantly take visitors to other lands and dimensions. Howl's Moving Castle was released in North America by Walt Disney Pictures, who distributed the film both in its original Japanese and in a dubbed English version;

My Review: This film is something very different from what I normally would watch. My wife brought this animated anime film to me and we watched it. I was pleasantly surprised by the story. The preview definitely shows that this film has a weird storyline, but it is actually drives the story along very well. This is a classic anime story of love and revenge. I really like the moving castle and the job that they did with it. It is a lot of fun to see and it was pretty believable for this tale. The old Sophie is pretty funny too and I really liked her character.

Recommend: I would recommend this film for the whole family. The kids will enjoy the animation of the film and the moving castle is a lot of fun, and the parents will enjoy the underlying themes that are in the film.