Editorial - Warner Home Video and the Ever Changing Logos

As another of these topics that sit in the wastelands of my head waiting to bear fruit and escape to a place beyond that vermin on machines, this editorial is not aimed at the studio in question, but a particular trend of theirs.

Which is replacing their older logos with the newer one; I know what you’re thinking straight away: “why is it such a big deal?” well I’ll tell you why punk, it’s a practice I find totally despicable as well as condescending and insulting to younger film fans like myself who were not even born when some of these films were made.

And there are two examples I would like to use for this editorial: Mad Max 2 and Christmas Vacation, now Mad Max 2 the DVD version opened with the original logo the studio used at that time but specially modified to fit within the prologue of the film which was in 4:3 window box before opening the film to widescreen, for the Blu-Ray restoration, this logo was replaced with the modern day logo used by the studio and already in widescreen, which in my eyes, broke the illusion and feel that director George Miller wanted to create with the opening of the film.

The next example: Christmas Vacation, once the still frame Warner Communications logo came up, the song started almost immediately after it, again it creates a mood and feel intended by the filmmakers but once again, a modern day logo takes it place and like in Mad Max 2, the mood and feel is broken because of it.

Now this won’t be all that bad as the recently released Dirty Harry collection is said to contain the original logos from the time of their release, as I only own the original Dirty Harry which does contain the original logo, I sincerely hope that it’s a step in the right direction for the studio.

In closing, this is not an attack on Warner Home Video itself, as the company has produced some great releases for its vintage films, its just one practice of theirs that I find very insulting to younger film fans like myself and also breaks a mood and feel that the filmmakers have in mind, hopefully starting with the Dirty Harry collection, this trend will see its way out but as a wise man once said: Only time will tell.

DVD News - The Dark Knight

Hi everyone.

In some VERY cool news, both DVDTimes.co.uk and DVDactive.com have announced the DVD and Blu-Ray editions of the Dark Knight for release on December 9th.

Australian stores should get it around that time but if you want to know more please go to the following sites listed above, HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA.

Edit: The DVD and Blu-Ray editions will be released in Australia on December 10th.

Film Review - Speed (1994)

Speed stars Keanu Reeves and Jeff Daniels as a pair of SWAT police officers who find themselves put to the ultimate test when a bomber played by Dennis Hopper hijacks a bus with a bomb that if it goes below 50 miles an hour, it explodes and now the chase begins to stop it.

Which is also the problem I had with the film, its pretty much a non stop chase movie that combines elements from both Die Hard and Mad Max 2, which I consider the two finest action movies ever made, here its all just action and thrills and chases which become all too familiar and repetitive, but I didn’t hate this movie altogether as there were some good performances but even they couldn’t lift what I thought was another run of the mill action film that goes non stop and has no plot to base itself on.

In short, this deserves a 2 and a half out of 5.

Film Review - Highlander (1986)

Highlander stars Christopher Lambert as Connor Macleod, born in 1518 in the village of Glenfinnen in Scotland, he is later cast out after becoming an Immortal and has since wandered through the centuries until 1985 New York City, when another known as the Kurgen (Clancy Brown) and others have come for an event called the Gathering, where in the end, there will be only one.

I really loved Highlander, and the heart and soul of the film is Lambert, who does a great job portraying Connor as a man who is literally world weary, having seen it all with his own eyes and lost his love at the same time, Brown is no slouch as Kurgen and neither is Sean Connery as Ramirez and Roxanne Hart as Brenda, one must also mention the great songs by Queen and the script that actually has the balls to wrap everything up this time around.

4 and a half for Highlander.

Film Review - Ghostbusters (1984)

Ghostbusters stars Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis as college students thrown out over their experiments that decide to become paranormal pest exterminators called “Ghostbusters”, but after their exploits make them a success, they have to deal with a more powerful ghost, one that could bring about the apocalypse.

Ghostbusters serves as almost a model for how comedies of this type should be made, on one hand the three leads as well as Ernie Hudson are very funny bouncing off each other as well as a fun chemistry between Murray and Sigourney Weaver and on the other, the film contains some great scenes of fear as well as some terrific special effects work done by Richard Edlund.

In closing, this is great fun and deserves a 4 out of 5.

Blu-Ray Review - Die Hard (1988)

The Movie:

Die Hard stars Bruce Willis as NYPD officer John McClane who has come to visit his estranged family for Christmas in LA, but before he does that he will have to save his wife and the other workers from a team of terrorists who have seized control of the office building where she works.

Die Hard is nothing short of a true classic and for my money the best action film after Mad Max 2, Willis is on top form and Alan Rickman as Hans Gruber is also just delightful, director John McTiernan brilliantly uses the Fox Plaza and the surroundings of it to give the film a real world feel, the music by Michael Kamen and the effects by Richard Edlund are also superior here: 5 out of 5.

The Blu-Ray:

Sadly, as great as this movie is, the Blu-ray does not do it justice, don’t get me wrong the sound is very good and also very loud but the visuals at times look a little too soft and as with the Blu-Ray of Mad Max 2, doesn’t quite immerse you into the film the way that the DVD version does.

The menu design also is a little clunky with no top menu and only a pop up menu that comes up during the film and returns to it after the extras you select have played, another big letdown is that only a handful of extras from the brilliant 2-disc version on DVD have been ported over, below is a full list of the extras from that version.

Audio Commentary by Director John McTiernan and Production Designer Jackson DeGovia
Scene-Specific Commentary by Special Effects Supervisor Richard Edlund
Text Commentary by Various Cast and Crew Members and Film Historian Eric Licthenfeld
From The Vault:
- Outtakes
---- "The Vault" (2 Audio Options) (6:12)
---- "Turning Off The Power" (3:23)
- 'The Newscasts' (7:58)
- 2 Magazine Articles
The Cutting Room:
- Scene Editing Workshop
- Multi-Camera Shooting
---- Scene R165G (0:24)
---- Scene 167 (1:08)
---- Scene 167A (0:42)
- Audio Mixing
- "Why Letterbox?" featurette (3:22)
- Glossary
Interactive Slide Show (9:26)
The Script
Ad Campaign:
- 3 Theatrical Trailers
- 7 TV Spots (3:37, Note: These are absent on the Australian version of this release)
- 'Making-Of' featurette (7:22)

Here are ones that have been ported over:

Audio Commentary by Director John McTiernan and Production Designer Jackson DeGovia
Scene-Specific Commentary by Special Effects Supervisor Richard Edlund
The Newscasts
Interactive Slide Show
3 Theatrical Trailers
7 TV Spots

And now, the ones that are sadly missing:

Text Commentary by Various Cast and Crew Members and Film Historian Eric Licthenfeld
From The Vault:
- Outtakes
---- "The Vault" (2 Audio Options) (6:12)
---- "Turning Off The Power" (3:23)
- 2 Magazine Articles
The Cutting Room:
- Scene Editing Workshop
- Multi-Camera Shooting
---- Scene R165G (0:24)
---- Scene 167 (1:08)
---- Scene 167A (0:42)
- Audio Mixing
- "Why Letterbox?" featurette (3:22)
- Glossary
'Making-Of' featurette (7:22)

As you can see, this is a little disappointing, especially considering that Blu-Ray could have held all of this stuff no problems but sadly again, Fox will withhold this stuff for a new Blu-Ray edition that has everything from the double disc DVD and essentially pull the same shit they pulled with DVD, pure Fucking Marvelous.

Overall:

Die Hard is a 5 star classic film in every sense of the word but the Blu-Ray edition does very little right and hell of a lot wrong and I can’t help but feel that a better version will come out with everything intact and the disc itself is also just not that great an improvement on the 2-disc DVD version, my advise is too hang on to that and skip this unless you simply have to have it no questions asked.

Blu-Ray Review: Mad Max 2 (1981)

The Movie:

Mad Max 2 or The Road Warrior as its known to US film fans is the second in the Mad Max series and sees the return of Mel Gibson in the title role and in a new environment: the Wastelands of tomorrow and in this he has to help a group of strangers in charge of an oil refinery escape to the coast with their prize and fend off the marauders who lurk in the darkness.

Mad Max 2 is the type of sequel I alluded to in my editorial regarding sequels, which is that whilst its as good as the original film that came before it, it also needs the first film to properly work and the viewer to have seen it but apart from that the movie is also a masterpiece of action cinema with director George Miller setting a bar only Christopher Nolan, James Cameron and John McTiernan have managed to step up too with some of their action pictures: 5 out of 5.

The Blu-Ray:

Mad Max 2 has now been issued on the new Blu-Ray format and I’m pleased to report that for the most part, the film excels its clear that it has undergone a brand new restoration and it looks great and really shows the unmistakable outback where the film was shot (Broken Hill, NSW for those who are wondering).

The audio is sadly not as good as the video for while it sounds clearer, it doesn’t bring you into the environment of the film as a DVD mix does and with a film like this which relies so much on the sound, it’s a bit disappointing.

One last thing I want to bring up is that while the disc correctly gives us the Australian version of the film, it changes the Warner Brothers logo to a modern day one in widescreen instead of the original logo from the film’s original release which was modified to fit in the opening, I know this is nitpicking but I really hate this practice and want it to end, the same thing happened on Christmas Vacation and its no better here.

The Extras:

Audio Commentary by Director/Co-Writer George Miller and Cinematographer Dean Semler: This is a wonderful track that fans will find delightful, its clear from the first go that the two are old friends and are having a blast reminiscing about the film, possibly the best commentary track I’ve heard since John Carpenter and Kurt Russell’s track for Big Trouble in Little China.

Introduction by Film Critic/Historian Leonard Maltin: Maltin provides a nice intro that older fans may not enjoy so much but younger fans like myself will find very appealing.

Theatrical Trailer: This is the US Trailer for the film and focuses on the chases and stunts instead of the plot, a nice change and sets the mood very well also, a huge thumbs up to Warner’s for including this.

Overall:

While this Blu-Ray of Mad Max 2 is very nice, to me it just feels like a step in the right direction towards a legitimate special edition of the film with the original logo intact as well the extras presented here and a new making of documentary plus the vintage featurette that's been seen elsewhere, but this feels good so I say get it as it’s the next best thing.

Film Review - Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007)

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is the second FF movie with Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis as the fantastic four and this time, Mr. Fantastic is planning to marry the invisible woman but at the same time, a mysterious entity known as the Silver Surfer is wreaking havoc and their wedding plans will have to be put on hold.

Rise of the Silver Surfer is an okay comic book film, mainly due to Doug Jones as the body of the Silver Surfer, he really does outdo himself but the voice by Lawrence Fishburne feels trite and forced and the rest of the film is just weak and one last thing, Jessica Alba has been consistently voted as the world’s most beautiful woman and here she wears a blonde wig which makes her look like a freak, whoever thought of this should be shot in the leg.

On top of all this, this movie gets a 2 out of 5 as it all feels mechanical and forced most of the time.

Film Review - Christine (1983)

Christine was first released in 1983 and stars Keith Gordon as a teenager named Arnie Cunningham who spots an old car whilst driving with his best friend played by John Stockwell, he instantly falls in love with the car, a 1958 Plymouth Fury, but his friends also start to notice a change in Arnie, a dark change.

So what did I think of this movie, well I didn’t think that the film was as good as it could have been, I thought that it didn’t spend enough time of Arnie’s transformation from high school nerd to charismatic hipster nor did it show more of Christine as the car from hell, both of were good ideas but they didn’t have the oomph that they should of.

One thing I did like though were the few scenes with Christine as the satanic car who does away with her victims, the direction by John Carpenter, who later made Big Trouble in Little China works best in these moments.

Out of 5, I will give this a 2 and a half, it had some great ideas in it that sadly didn’t reach their full potential.

Editorial - The Star Wars Trilogy: More than Just Movies

Throughout the latter years of our movie history, there has been one set of films on almost everyone’s lips, one set that has warmed its way into the deepest of our hearts and one that fans and critics will never forget.

And that is: The Star Wars Trilogy.

I don’t think there is one person on Earth that has not got an opinion of it since Star Wars was first released on cinema screens all over the world in 1977, it became clear then that movie audiences had seen something special and unique, a movie that later became a phenomenon and global box office smash, and the reasons are obvious as you watch the film today: the groundbreaking special effects work, the storyline of good vs. evil and the mother of all screen villains – Lord Darth Vader.

But if fans thought that film was something to behold, 3 years later in 1980, came its sequel, The Empire Strikes Back and here was the shock: this film was better than the original Star Wars movie, with Irvin Kershner and Lawrence Kasdan now on board, Empire took the series down a dark path, with a more serious tone, much bigger special effects sequences and four words that later became legend: “I am your father”, what was a person to do and when it was over, what was going to happen next?

Unfortunately, the answer to those questions would have to wait until 1983, when the third and last film in the trilogy, Return of the Jedi debuted in theatres worldwide, and audiences got the answers they wanted as well as a return to the tone of the original Star Wars film, Jedi has gotten a more mixed response over the years, mainly due to the Ewoks, who many feel lighten the mood of the film, I personally feel Jedi gets a bit of a bum wrap as there are several great sequences in the film and the film also has a nice conclusion to it as well as the most dazzling special effects I’ve ever seen.

But despite Jedi’s flaws, it’s impossible to separate the trilogy without losing a chunk of the puzzle it creates, but these movies are more than just movies, they’re in some ways memories, of the past, of more innocent times, of family and friends and Christmases and birthdays to name a few, yes indeed, this trilogy has continued to endure and delight new generations in the years since their debut and the Force will always be strong with them.

Film Review - Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith is the last of the Star Wars films and after two movies, we finally get to see just how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader but before that we see Anakin and Obi Wan battling the vile General Grievous, Yoda on the Wookie home world with an appearance by a fan favorite and so on and so forth.

And now, I was very disappointed with this entry in the series, whilst the Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones were fun popcorn action adventure fare which unfortunately ran a little long, this one was a true failure, though some of the CG work that opens the film is good, this film really should have had a more mature tone like The Empire Strikes Back, which had a dark tone throughout whereas here director George Lucas puts in too much comedy and it waters down the tension in places.

2 and a half for Revenge of the Sith.

Film Review - Aliens (1986)

Aliens is the second movie in the Alien series and stars Sigourney Weaver once again as Ellen Ripley, haunted by nightmares of the alien that destroyed her crew in the first film, this time nearly 60 years have past and she has to return with a squad of marines after a colony loses contact, but when they get there, they’ll need all the help they can get.

I’ll keep this one short and sweet, Aliens is one of the most exhilarating experiences I have ever had watching a film, director James Cameron really knows how to direct action scenes and the Alien effects by the late Stan Winston are very cool to watch as well as some great dialogue, if there is a down side however it is the fact that it needs viewers to have watched the original film beforehand, so heed this advice.

All in all, this film deserves a firm 4 and a half out of 5.

Film Review - Top Gun (1986)

Top Gun stars Tom Cruise in the role that put him on the Hollywood A list, ace navy fighter pilot Maverick who along with his partner Goose played by Anthony Edwards are sent to the top fighter pilot school known as Top Gun, whilst there Maverick develops a rivalry with another pilot code named Iceman, played by Val Kilmer and the two will have to put themselves to the test if they want to be the best of the best.

I enjoyed Top Gun for what it was, a fun popcorn film with some great music such as "Danger Zone" by Kenny Loggins and the action scenes including the aerial photography are second to none, making the viewers believe they’re that high in the air but on a negative note, the film was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and the late Don Simpson who also made the first two Beverly Hills Cop films in between this film and compared to those, this one doesn’t measure up.

But despite that, Top Gun gets 3 out of 5.

Film Review - Die Hard 4.0 (2007)

Die Hard 4.0, released as Live Free or Die Hard in the US, sees the return of John McClane (Bruce Willis) and deal with Thomas Gabriel (Timothy Olyphant) who is systemically shutting down the US with a computer program known as a “fire sale”, McClane’s only hope in stopping Gabriel lies in Matthew Farrell (Justin Long).

In my honest opinion, I thought Die Hard 4.0 wasn’t any good; one reason was that the stunts felt too much like a rehash of scenes from Mad Max 2, True Lies and Speed, being that they involve a Jet, a collapsing freeway and a truck, the stunts as well were also a little over the top and bordered on the ridiculous.

One other reason was the weak villain; the previous films had Alan Rickman, William Sadler and Jeremy Irons, all great actors on their own terms and could hold their own against McClane, here Olyphant talks big but doesn’t really hold a lot of menace in the way that Gruber did in the original film.

But if there was one thing that really left me crushed, it was the censoring of the infamous “Yippee-Ki-Yay” line, since appearing in the original film the line has become one of the most iconic quotes in movie history, despite its use of profanity, to me, this line was a must in this film and I was hugely disappointed that it was censored.

Another beef was the absence of the symphonic Ode to Joy, which is another icon of the series and was missing from this film entirely, which was another huge disappointment.

One highlight though was Bruce Willis, it was a blessing and a curse to see him play McClane once more, the blessing being that he completely makes the character his own, getting into his skin in a way that no one else could, but the curse is that Willis is starting to get a little too old to play the part.

Bottom line, see this film if you must, but if you’re anything like me and only enjoyed the original, save your money for when the film hits DVD and decide for yourselves.

Film Review - Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Close Encounters was first released in 1977 and stars Richard Dreyfuss as Roy Neary, who works for a power company and whilst out working one night he notices a strange light in the sky, one that he’s never seen before and is determined to find out what it is, no matter the cost.

I know that this film has a large following, but I can’t say I was all that impressed with the film, Steven Spielberg writes and directs this film and although he does a good job at directing the film, I really wish the film had focused on Neary’s obsession with the bright light he saw whilst out on the job some more, it is a great idea and one that sadly isn’t used as well as it could have been.

But the film wasn’t all bad, the special effects on the spaceships were very well done, they move with a real fluidity and are very much in the frame rather than now where CGI effects dominate the scene and stick out like a sore thumb.

Out of 5 I’m going to give this a 3, it has good special effects but the story is too muddled.

Editorial - Sequels: Why do most never measure up?

And now, we come to a topic that is on most movie goers lists for many years, the nature of sequels and why most never measure up.

And why I feel most never measure up to their previous counterparts lies in three examples I will present: Ghostbusters 2, Robocop 2 and Highlander 2.

I know what you’re thinking: what do those three have in common; well for my money all three represent possibly the three worst sequels ever made as they are truly a mess and made purely because the originals that came before them were such smash hits, the studios just had to make them but instead they just feel like total cash ins with little to no effort to actually do their originals justice and most likely relying on wall to wall action and special effects to try and top the original film.

As for the other end of the spectrum, there is probably only one sequel that I would vote as being better than the original and that is “The Empire Strikes Back”, I know it’s a “well, duh” vote, but to me it really builds on the original Star Wars and creates a better and well made film and another I want to mention, “Mad Max 2” is an example of a sequel as good as the original but also one that simply could not exist without the original movie behind it.

Mad Max 2 is also an example of what I feel constitutes a genuine sequel, one that not necessarily ends with a cliffhanger for another film but one that has a beginning, middle and end all its own and leaves you satisfied to the point that you may not want to see a third to follow it.

So there you have it folks, all of these mentioned above are what I consider the nature of movie sequels and their various incarnations to how they relate to movie goers.

Film Review - Ghostbusters II (1989)

Ghostbusters II takes place 5 years after the events of the original film and sees the four Ghostbusters gone their own ways and seen as lunatics after causing millions of dollars in damage to New York, but after a river of slime begins to emerge from the sewers as well as a demon hiding in a 16^th century painting, the city might want to change its mind.

Like the Robocop and Highlander sequels that followed, Ghostbusters II is a mess of a film that should not have happened, although its not a mess in terms of those sequels, this one has no energy or humor, just wall to wall special effects that feel recycled from the first film and Bill Murray is forced to carry the film on his own, but even he feels tired of the role in places and personally, I don’t blame him.

All in all, 1 out of 5 for this one, avoid it at all costs.

Film Review - Highlander II (1991)

Highlander II picks up about 25 years after the end of the first movie and this time, the story concerns Connor as an old man and the Earth is now under the protection of an artificial Shield following the collapse of the ozone layer, but when an environmentalist tells him that the ozone could be normal again, Connor has to find a way to help.

And now the fun part, Highlander II is an absolute mess of a film that never should have been made, there I said it, the first Highlander wrapped up everything to the point that there was no need for a part 2, but as usual we got one anyway and like Robocop 2, it’s a complete disaster that makes the same mistakes that film did, getting rid of the story elements and replacing it with wall to wall action and contradictions of events past, when will these people learn.

So yeah, 0 out of 5 for yet another mess of a sequel.

Film Review - Misery (1990)

Misery was first released in 1990 and stars James Caan as a novelist named Paul Sheldon who has just finished the book that will kill off his character named Misery Chastain, after getting into a car accident he is rescued by a former nurse named Annie Wilkes played very well by Kathy Bates, but there is more to her than meets the eye.

So what did I think of Misery, well to be honest I thought the film was very bizarre and a little sick in places, I couldn’t help but think that the movie degenerated into a sick and twisted love story between the characters played by Caan and Bates and there is also no clear indication in the film as to exactly why Wilkes keeps Sheldon in her home and because of this I couldn’t help but feel that the movie went along the direction it did.

But I didn’t think that badly of it, I really enjoyed the performances by Caan and Bates as well as the supporting performances by screen legend Lauren Bacall as Sheldon’s editor and Richard Farnsworth as the town sheriff, I also enjoyed the photography by Barry Sonnenfeld who would later become a director, these I helped elevate the film.

Out of 5, I will give this a 3, it has some good performances but the story is too unsure of itself.

Film Review - Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Raiders of the Lost Ark was first released in 1981 and stars Harrison Ford as archaeologist Indiana Jones, who is seeking the Ark of the Covenant, but he’ll have to contend with the Nazi’s first in order to get it.

Here is where I have to be honest, even though I greatly enjoyed Raiders, I thought that Mad Max 2, directed by George Miller and released a few months after this film did a much better job at creating action in a way that was exhilarating, exciting and scary almost all at once.

Out of 5, this gets a 4, it’s a great film but I thought that Miller did it better with his film.

Editorial - The Dark Knight: A Phenomenon without Rules, A Success of Anarchy and a Money load of Chaos

As I sit here writing this editorial, The Dark Knight has now become the second highest grossing film in American Box office History behind Titanic’s $600 million haul from 1997, with its total currently at around $502 million dollars and possibly going higher, it’s destroyed Iron Man and Indy IV to become the years highest grossing film, but there’s one question some of you are probably asking: Why and How is it making all this money?

Well, in my book there are three main reasons the movie has done the business it has, first off for better or worse is Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker, ever since his tragic and unexpected death in January, the media have made a firestorm about his role in the film and ever since Peter Travers, the film critic of Rolling Stone magazine posted his review saying Ledger should receive a posthumous Oscar for his work, many people who normally wouldn’t see the film have flocked to do so (and trust me, the screening in Mt. Gambier I attended was PACKED, with people coming in droves).

Another would definitely have to be the brilliant marketing campaign; the trailers and the posters created for the film brilliantly captured the films spirit and also the very impressive viral marketing with such sites as gothamcablenews.com and thehahahatimes.com also giving fans more about the film, both Warner Brothers and Christopher Nolan deserve major applause for the marketing of the film.

And last but definitely not least, the movie itself has become the movie event that not only Batman fans but also movie fans have been waiting for, yes folks the film itself is actually that good, my opinion of the film has been covered elsewhere but I also want to add that this could very well be the movie event of the decade.

So there you go folks, three reasons why I feel The Dark Knight has become the success it has, and on one last note: huge congratulations to all involved for making this happen and as for Heath, well a sincere thank you on behalf of the world audience for putting a smile on our face.

Film Review - Beverly Hills Cop 2 (1987)

Beverly Hills Cop 2 was first released in 1987 and sees Eddie Murphy reprise his role as Axel Foley, the Detroit Detective who raised hell in Cop 1, this time Foley’s friend Bogomil is gunned down whilst on a case and Axel travels back to Beverly Hills and teams up with Taggart and Rosewood played by John Ashton and Judge Reinhold also from C1 to find out how.

Beverly Hills Cop 2 for me was a film that was split into two distinct halves, the first being a very funny comedy with some great chemistry between Murphy, Reinhold and Ashton, seeing the three work together was a great joy and for me, carried the film to being a somewhat decent sequel.

But Cop 2 had one fatal weakness that was just as strong as the film’s strength, near wall to wall action; personally I find this to be a mixed blessing and Tony Scott, brother of Ridley and the director of the film, doesn’t really make the action justifiable when what we want is more of Murphy, Reinhold and Ashton.

Out of 5, I will give this a 2 and a half, as while Murphy, Ashton and Reinhold are great to watch together, the action felt very routine.