Movie Review: Whiplash (2014)

Here is a little fun fact for you, I am actually a musician. Yeah, didn’t see that one coming, did ya? I play the trombone. For how long you may ask? Well this fall I will have played for 10 years (Damn, dude!). I enjoy playing and it is something that I have always enjoyed despite a few ups and downs here and there. And even though there have been times I have felt I didn’t enjoy it too much, I have never had it as tough as the main character of this movie.

What I am saying is that this is my review of “Whiplash”.

Andrew Neyman (Miles Teller) is a young man with a dream. This dream is to become the next big jazz drummer. So he enrolls in this certain music school. And when he gets a shot to be in a sort of high-end orchestra in that school he meets conductor Terence Fletcher (J.K. Simmons) who is the scariest motherfucker ever. And from that point on we see not only how Andrew evolves as a drummer and person but we also get to see some psychological warfare between him and Fletcher. And this butting of heads creates one of the most intense storylines I have seen and not one firearm is shot. You see how Fletcher really does his best to bring Andrew down to the ground with both verbal and physical abuse. You see how Andrew dealing with the orchestral/Fletcher problems and you also get a small look into the fact on how the world looks at musicians compared to athletes. And I loved absolutely every second of the story of this movie. It is dramatic, it is intense and it is powerful. I was interested every second of screentime. The story of “Whiplash” is fantastic.

All the characters have good arcs, writing and acting. Miles Teller I never expected much from in anything really, but I was kind of turned around when I saw him in this movie. He really got some great acting chops. So I am curious to see how he takes on the role of Mr. Fantastic in the upcoming “Fantastic Four” movie. But by far, the highlight of the movie was the performance of J.K. Simmons. Let me put it like this. There is good acting, there is great acting and then there is J.K. Simmons in “Whiplash”. When he was on screen I didn’t see J. Jonah Jameson or Assistant Chief Will Pope, this was a new guy who I swear is the most intimidating character in a movie since Derk Vinyard in “American History X”. Simmons was absolutely fantastic as this vulgar, loud and frightening character. I do overall think the characters and the acting in this movie are absolutely great.

The score by Tim Simonec is great. It is jazzy, it is cool and it fits fantastically in this movie. Of course there were a few tracks that were simply covers (like Don Ellis’ song “Whiplash”). But the covers that were in the movie were absolutely fantastic and the original tracks were great as well. This is a soundtrack I love listening to and will probably buy.

This movie is beautifully shot. Sure, it isn’t as innovative as “Birdman” but it still looks great. The use of darkness and lighting in this movie is really great and the camera work is really, really good. Something that was interesting to find out about this movie is that even though they are playing to backing tracks in the movie, Miles Teller is apparently one hell of a drummer and has been playing since age 15. I also want to mention that the last 10 – 20 minutes of this movie are absolutely phenomenal and is probably one of the best finales I have seen in any movie ever.

This movie has gotten some pretty great reception. On Rotten Tomatoes this movie has a 95% positive rating with a “Fresh” certification. On Metacritic this movie got a score of 88/100. And on imdb.com this movie has an 8,6/10 and is ranked #38 on the “Top 250” list. “Whiplash” also won 3 Oscars in the categories of Best Supporting Actor (J.K. Simmons), Best Film Editing and Best sound mixing. The movie was also nominated for another 2 Oscars in the categories of Best motion picture of the year and Best adapted screenplay. 

“Whiplash” is an absolutely fantastic movie with a great story, fantastic performances, great music, great directing and one of the best finales ever! Time for my final score. JEFF! GET THE FOLDER! Great! Get the fuck out of my sight before I demolish you! My final score for “Whiplash” is a 9,85/10. This is a fantastic movie that definitely is worthy of the “SEAL OF APPROVAL!”

Review of “Whiplash” is now done.

I don’t wanna start playing drums, I might end up with Fletcher!

Movie Review: Nightcrawler (2014)

No, I will not do a joke again like the one I did with my “Birdman” review. I can however say that the title got me a little confused the first time I saw it. I was like “A movie about the X-men character? What the fuck?”. Then I saw the trailer and it wasn’t about the “X-men” character. So now I am finally here to talk about it.

Ladies and gentlemen… “Nightcrawler”.

Louis Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a dedicated young man looking for a job. Then one night he finds out about this  rather unknown and probably illegal profession where you go with a camera to a crime scene as soon as possible and get footage that you sell to news stations. And from that point on I was intrigued and interested in the story. Sure, the premise is different but simple, but that’s not all. It is also a deep character study into the mind of a (possible) psychopath. The study of Louis, his interaction with people and situations and the look into this world of crime-reporter-thing makes for one of the most clever and compelling stories of modern days.

The characters all have some kind of arc that they follow and it all works out well. And I have to get it out of the way, Louis Bloom is probably the creepiest fucking character I have seen in a movie since the Dementors from “Harry Potter”. And Jake Gyllenhaal plays him so well that I didn’t see anything but this creepy and loathsome guy who will do anything to get the footage and the perfect shots. Rene Russo is also in this movie as the sort of news station director he sells the footage to and she is also great in this movie. Also, Bill Paxton is in this movie and he is as entertaining (and kind of dick-y) as always. I mean, he’s Bill Paxton, that’s how it is. Overall I think all the characters and performances in this movie are great.

The score by James Newton Howard is fantastic! He uses a lot of synth and a fair amount of electric guitar in this movie to really help capture the feel of the Los Angeles night life. The music was sometimes creepy, sometimes suspenseful, sometimes action-y but always great and euphoric. I absolutely adored the score for the movie.

This movie is directed by Dan Gilroy, a first time director… but you would never guess it in how well this movie was directed. I got pretty much the same reaction as when I saw “Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang” for the first time and found out it was Shane Black’s directorial debut. Would I say this movie is perfectly directed? Not really, no. But here is the thing, it doesn’t need to be perfect, it just needs to be great and it was. I also have to mention one thing about Gyllenhaal again… fuck he got one creepy smile in this movie. It is really noticeable especially since he lost a pretty good amount of weight to play this character. But that smile is creepy any way you look at it… jeez!

This movie was very well-received when it came out. On Rotten Tomatoes it has a 95% positive rating with a “Fresh” certification. On Metacritic it has a score of 76/100. And on imdb.com it has an 8,0/10. “Nightcrawler” was also nominated for 1 Oscar in the category of Best original screenplay.

“Nightcrawler” is an excellent thriller with a great plot, a creepy/fantastic performance from Jake Gyllenhaal and great performances from all the other actors, a great score, great direction and one of the most suspenseful third acts I have ever seen. Time for my final score. Oh there you are Lou, do you have the footage? Great! Thank you! My final score for “Nightcrawler” is a 9,83/10. This is an excellent movie that of course gets the “SEAL OF APPROVAL!”

Review of “Nightcrawler” is now completed.

Creepiest. Son of a bitch. Ever.

My Favorite Scenes: Angel – Season 5 – Puppet vs. Spike

How are you guys doing today? “My Favorite Scenes” is back… again. Time to share another scene that I like from any movie/show/thing. And what is it this time? This time it is the “fight” from the fifth season of fantasy/action show “Angel” (Sidenote: “Angel” is a spinoff from “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) between titular character Angel (David Boreanaz) and my personal favorite character Spike (James Marsters). The twist? Angel has been turned into a puppet and that makes this “fight” really hilarious. If you haven’t seen “Angel” yet then I suggest you should, it’s a great show. Just remember that it can be very episodic. You might also want to watch the first few seasons of “Buffy” to get the full backstory. Anyway, I love this scene and it cracks me up everytime.
Enjoy!

Movie Review: Birdman (2014)

Superhero movies! You either love them or you hate them, that’s how it is. Fine you can be indifferent about them too, but that isn’t important. So last year I heard about this new superhero movie that when it came out got some of the best reviews of any superhero movie ever. So I was of course pumped! Now this superher-what? This isn’t a superhero movie? Really? Well, fuck you, Jeff!

So this isn’t a superhero movie apparently… fuck it, this is my review of “Birdman”.

“Birdman” is about washed up actor Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton). In the early 90’s he played superhero “Birdman” (Roll Credits). But now he got no major relevance. So to kind of get back some of that former glory he is setting up a stage play. But that isn’t as easy as it may seem. For one it is on Broadway, A.K.A it is a big production. Next up he has to deal with a few family issues, mainly his daughter Sam (Emma Stone). He also has to deal with a last minute replacement actor named Mike (Edward Norton) who is really “method”. We also get to kind of see Riggan’s descent into madness throughout. And it turns out the story of “Birdman” is fucking amazing. I have never been invested in a story this weird and amazing since I first saw “Fight Club”. Seeing Riggan and everybody try to deal with setting up the play is interesting and then to see the often kind of surrealistic descent into madness from Riggan just adds to the already multi-layered and amazing story.

The characters in this movie are all incredibly interesting with some terrific writing and great development. It is also noticeable that they all have their own problems to deal with. It was also great to see a movie with so many great performances. Michael Keaton gives the best performance of his entire career. I have always liked the guy, bur he has never really been THIS good. Emma Stone was also great. Hell, even Zach Galifianakis was really good in this movie. And I am aware you know I will gush over Edward Norton since he is my favorite actor so let’s just get it over with. Edward Norton was fucking amazing in this movie. Now he is always great, but he hasn’t given a performance this good since I don’t know, “The Illusionist” maybe. But I do think all the acting in the movie was great and all characters were well-rounded and well-written.

The score was done by Antonio Sanchez and the funny thing about the score is that it is made from percussion only… but I didn’t mind. The score was truly great and really worked to give the feel of all the situations and emotions of the characters. There is also a thing about the score that integrates itself into the movie in a really fun way that I am not going to spoil, but when you see it you will know it and really enjoy it. Overall I found the score to be great.

This movie looks amazing. Not only because they found people who could line up the shots perfectly but also because it all looks like a continuous shot. That’s right, the entirety of “Birdman” looks like one long never-ending shot. Of course there are cuts in it, but it is cheated and edited so well that it isn’t easy finding them all. It is also kind of ironic that this is about a guy who used to play an iconic superhero, even bigger irony is that the last movie that said character was in came out 1992 (according to characters in the movie). Why is this ironic? Well because Michael Keaton used to play Batman back in the day and that the last movie he played Batman in was “Batman Returns” which came out in 1992. See the irony? Good. To keep on the same trail of superheroes, this movie gives a lot of great statements on superhero movies, stage plays, actors, critics and everything within the entertainment business you could think of. And that type of self aware commentary is something I love seeing in movies. Of course I love myself a good superhero movie, but the way this movie comments on them is genius. Believe me, this movie doesn’t rip the superhero movies a new one, but it sheds a good amount of light and gives great commentary on it. There is also a scene featuring some great commentary in the movie where the character of Riggan just explodes on a critic and it is glorious! Of course I might sound a tiny bit like a hypocrit saying that because I might be viewed on as a critic and I completely understand that, but I’m not a critic… but that’s for another time! *Nudge nudge, wink wink*.

This movie like I said in the beginning got some great reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes it has a 93% positive rating and is certified “Fresh”. On Metacritic it has a score of 88/100. And on imdb.com it has an 8,1/10 and is ranked #202 on the “Top 250” list. Also, as of this review the movie has been nominated for 9 Oscars (Holy shit) in the categories of Best motion picture of the year, Best Actor (Michael Keaton), Best Supporting Actor (Edward Norton), Best Supporting Actress (Emma Stone), Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best cinematography, Best sound mixing and Best sound editing.

“Birdman” is an achievment in film-making with it’s original filming/editing style. It also got some truly great performances, a great score, a great original story and some great commentary on the entertainment industry. Time for my final score. JEFF! Where’s the fucking envelope!? Thank you! My final score for “Birdman” is a 9,86/10. This is a fantastic movie that of course gets the “SEAL OF APPROVAL!”

“Birdman” is now reviewed.

Why the extra title? Why not simply choose one? Either you go “Birdman” or you go “The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance”. Simple as that.

My Favorite Scenes: Captain America: The Winter Soldier – Elevator Scene

Hello, friends! I’m here again to share a scene from a movie/show/thing with you that I highly enjoyed. And what do we have this time? We have the badass elevator scene from the badass action movie “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”. In this scene we see Cap (Chris Evans) trying to fight a bunch of people who he thought he could trust. This scene is how action should be done when either in a confined space or in general. I really enjoyed this scene and I hope you do to!
Enjoy!

Guest Blog – Christians Against Dinosaurs

This is fucking amazing

Series Review: Constantine – Season 1 (2014 – 2015)

 

Whenever you find a good show you want it to go on for quite some time, right? Well that is something that happens to me every now and then. I find a show that maybe has one (or more) seasons and I think “Man, this is great, keep this going!”. Unfortunately continuations don’t always happen and that saddens me. This is such a time. The only reason I am reviewing this is because there is a chance it won’t get a second season. I otherwise want to review a show if it is finished and I have finished every episode. So let’s have a look.

Ladies and gentlemen… “Constantine”!

This show is based on the “Hellblazer” comics and is about protagonist John Constantine (Matt Ryan). He is an exorcist/demonologist/master of the dark arts. After he went into hiding after a major fuck up he has to come back out as a darkness is coming in towards the world. But he isn’t operatingn alone, oh no! He will try to save the world with his old friend and driver Chas (Charles Halford) and his newly found friend and psychic Zed (Angélica Celaya). There is also an angel by the name of Manny (Harold Perrineau, also fucking really?). Of course the layout isn’t only main story of John and friends taking on this huge darkness. The show follows a sort of “Freak of the week” format where every episode(ish) they have to face a new smaller supernatural threat. Now that has been the complaint done by some people as it doesn’t benefit the narrative structure 100%, and I can get behind that argument. But I still enjoyed it. It was fun and great seeing John and the others take care of every supernatural problem they encounter. I liked the plot.

The characters in the show all have good personalities and are all very interesting. Let’s start off with our main man, Constantine (roll credits). He is a careless, witty, cool, asshole. But that is how I like him and Matt Ryan portrays that so well. What I also like is that Constantine isn’t an action hero in this unlike in that movie with Keanu Reeves (Sidenote: The movie is enjoyable). In this show he is vulnerable, believe me, he can take care of himself but he isn’t like this ultra badass action dude. That is why I like him, he is relatable. It is also fun having Captain Edward Kenway (Sidenote: “Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag” reference) playing this awesome character. Next up is Chas, John’s best friend and driver… in a taxi. I am not going to spoil the cool thing about Chas here as you find out in the first episode and as it is the coolest shit ever. Sure, he isn’t AS prominent as John but he is still a valuable asset to the show. What you like about him is that he is the calm and collected center who sort of balances out the weird that is John Constantine. Also, whenever he gets angry he explodes and it is glorious especially since Charles Halford has such a powerful voice. And finally we have Zed, a psychic who helps John with her visions that usually help the gang to determine where to go next. What I like about her is like Chas, she is a good balance to John and his shenanigans. She is also a tough lady who can take care of herself when she needs to but she still keeps a kind of vulnerable and almost innocent aura about her. Overall the characters of “Constantine” are all great and really well-acted.

The score was done by acclaimed composer Bear McCreary (Walking Dead, Battlestar Galactica). And I think it works perfectly. You get what you’d expect from a horror-themed fantasy show. A lot of suspenseful tracks with a lot of epic tracks as well when they are needed. I also noticed there is a good usage of like a keyboard or organ or something, I don’t fucking know what it is but it sounds awesome! You can hear it mostly in the theme tune of the show which I would call a great theme tune. The music in the show is great.

The visual effects in this show are pretty great. They are really well done and look truly horrific and badass and awesome. The same can be said for how they did with the camera work. It looks great with excellent cinematography. There is a fair amount of use of the “Dutch angle” (Sidenote: Dutch angle means you film it at a circa 45 degree angle). They did it excellently in the scenes where it was used and it fit the scenes perfectly unlike that piece of shit called “Battlefield Earth”.

This movie has gotten some mixed reception to say the least. On Rotten Tomatoes it has a 72% positive rating. Metacritic once again has the lowest score with a score of 53/100. And on imdb the show has a score of 7,7/10.

“Constantine” is one of the best fantasy shows of recent years. Sure, the narrative style will divide audiences but the plot and individual episodes are all great. The acting is really good, the writing is great with one moment in the show almost tearing me up, the score is excellent and everything about the visuals is just fantastic. Time for my final score. O potens ultima signant, venit ad me! My final score for “Constantine” season 1 (Or “Constantine” in general if there is no season 2) is a 9,88/10. I absolutely loved this show and I will give it my “SEAL OF APPROVAL!”.

Review of “Constantine” is completed.

Just a minute more guys, I really want this show to go on and get more seasons so I would appreciate it if you could sign this petition to help maybe get it continued, thank you! http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/save-constantine

Movie Review: John Wick (2014)

Is it just me or are action movies these days incredibly reserved and stiff? I mean, in comparison with how they were 20 years ago. Remember the intense action movies of the 80’s and 90’s such as “Die Hard” or “Speed”? Because I remember those (despite my young age) and they are awesome. They intense, badass and for the most part unrelenting. These days all action movies are PG-13 with shaky-cam and obring premises. Okay, not all modern action movies are awful, the “Bourne” trilogy is fucking awesome, but you get my point. But this is a discussion for another time, today we are getting something else! This time we are taking a look at a modern action movie that has gotten good reviews and it is… actually rated R… holy shit. Let’s review it!

Johns and Janes… “John Wick”.

The plot to this movie is actually really simple to summarize. Russian mobsters take everything from former hitman John Wick (Keanu Reeves) and then John goes out on a revenge spree, taking them out one after one. That’s it really. It is a simple revenge plot with a lot of great sort of world building, establishing this universe and adding a few neat twists and turns. But how does the plot work to keep the movie going? Pretty well actually. It is a simple plot that works because of good execution and good twists. I thouroughly enjoyed the plot of “John Wick”.

The character of John Wick is pretty relatable in comparison to a lot of action heroes. Not only does Keanu Reeves have that feel about him, but he also gets his ass kicked a fair amount. He kicks a ton of ass but also gets his ass kicked… he is kind of like John McClane from “Die Hard” in that sense and I like that. i also have to dare to say that this is probably the best performance I have ever seen from Keanu. He shows a lot of emotions in this movie, not only his regular “stiff but smiling sometimes thing”. He shows a lot of anger and despair throughout the movie and he actually gives a great performance. The otehr characters in the movie were all great as well. Michael Nyqvist plays Russian mobster Viggo Tarasov and he does it splendidly. He adds a lot to the character and he perfectly fit. Alfie Allen plays his son Iosef and he plays a dick. And he is good at playing a dick. That is what he is. All actors gave really good performances and the characters were well-written.

The soundtrack in this movie was awesome. The original score was done by Tyler Bates (Guardians of the Galaxy) and was really good. The different songs he made fit perfectly the situations and scenes they were used in. There were also a few licensed tracks in there which were… badass to say the least. They were for the most part hard rock and metal tracks (Sidenote: you can imagine how they were used if I called them “badass”). The music in the movie was great.

What’s fun to ntoe about this movie is that it was directed by a pair of veteran stuntmen and that it was their directorial debut. Where am I going with that statement? The movie is really well shot and it looks fantastic! It’s always fun to see when someone is a first time director and actually makes the movie really well-directed. The action in the movie is also really awesome. Remember my rant about modern action I made in the beginning? Yeah this movie is nothing of that. The camera shows the action and it is swift, bloody, brutal and incredibly well done. You notice that Keanu does most if not all of his action scenes and I like that, he knows the audience wants a good time with action movies and he makes sure we know he is engaged in it all. And I swear, this movie has the best nightclub scene since “Collateral” in 2004. Not sure which one I like better… but both are fantastic!

How did this movie do? You read my little thing in the beginning right? This movie did well. On Rotten Tomatoes it has an 83% positive rating with a “Fresh” certification. On Metacritic it has a score of 67/100. And on imdb it has a score of 7,2/10.

“John Wick” is a badass motherfucking action movie with a great performance by Keanu Reeves, a good plot and a kickass soundtrack. It also looks visually great! Time for my final score. *Shoots bad guys* My final score for “John Wick” is a 9,73/10 which as you know gives it the “SEAL OF APPROVAL!”

Review of “John Wick” completed.

This feels like a video game… but I don’t mind.

Movie Review: Henry’s Crime (2011)

Heist movies! they come, they go, they rock, they suck! That is the circle of life my friends. Heist movies are some of the most entertaining movies existing, mainly from seeing both the plan and execution of said heist. We have had some really awesome ones such as “Heat”. Then we have also had some less-than-stellar ones like “30 minutes or less”. But it is always interesting to see what different heist movie brings to the table. Today we are taking a look at a heist movie that not too many people know about… maybe for the better? But is it really complete shit? Or is it actually a masterpiece? Let’s find out!

Henrys and Henriettas… “Henry’s Crime”.

The movie follows Henry Torne (Keanu Reeves) who works nights in a toll booth. But one day everything changes when he gets charged with first degree armed robbery (even though he didn’t commit the crime). Three years later he gets out of prison to see that everything have changed. His wife Debbie (Judy Greer) being together with another dude and such. But after going to the bathroom at a local diner he gets a plan. What kind of plan you ask? Well the dumb son of a bitch gets a plan to go and rob the fucking bank he was arrested for allegedly robbing. And he does it with the help of his former cellmate Max (James Caan) and his new (and kind of bitchy) friend Julie (Vera Farmiga). The plot is silly but I feel like it works in the sense that it isn’t completely brainless. The only problems I had with the plot are minor pacing issues here and there. Overall it was pretty good.

The characters are for the most part good. Keanu was good in the role even though maybe a bit stilted (like usual). But I enjoyed watching him because I felt that he had a bit of chemistry with the other actors. Particularly James Caan who I thought was pretty awesome in the movie. He was by far the most interesting and entertaining character in the movie. Vera Farmiga was also really good in the role as this kind of bitchy yet likeable woman. I enjoyed the characters and acting for the most part.

The music in the movie was pretty cool. It was a mix of jazz, blues and gospel. I thought the music was good and fit. For the most part there were only licensed tracks in those styles, but since they were used well enough in the movie I didn’t mind. I am sure there was an original score in there somewhere but I didn’t feel like looking it up to see who composed it. But I did like what I heard!

The camera work (while nothing mindblowing) was pretty good. It looked good enough and never bothered me in any way. I also did laugh at a fair amount of the jokes in this movie. Not all of them hit me but I did enjoy a fair amount of them.

This movie has gotten some pretty mixed reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes it has a 40% positive rating. On Metacritic it has a score of 49/100. Roger Ebert didn’t like it too much giving it only 2/4 stars. And on imdb.com it has a score of 6,0/10.

“Henry’s Crime” is an enjoyable and pretty funny heist movie with a few decent performances and some pretty good music. The camera work was pretty good as well. But like I said, nothing in this movie was particularly mindblowing or Oscar worthy. Time for my final score. Thank you Henry, coudln’t have been easy to steal the envelope, huh? My final score for “Henry’s Crime” is a 7,45/10. It’s a pretty good time and I think it is worth renting.

Review of “Henry’s Crime” is done.

What? No “woaw”, Keanu? Shame on you.

Movie Review: Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

Sequels. Love them, hate them, don’t give a shit about them. There are many sides to how it can go for a sequel. Most times sequels can never live up to the original. But then we have a few gems that actually surpass the original like “Terminator 2” or “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”. Today we are taking a look at a sequel for a movie I review a few weeks back. Is it as good as the first or will it fall flat? Let’s have a look!

Cops and robbers… “Lethal Weapon 2”.

Riggs (Mel Gibson) and Murtaugh (Danny Glover) are back! Set one year(ish) after the first movie it follows our heroes as they have to protect someone who has been involved with some South African diplomats who are up to shady shit. This man they to protect is the eccentric and kinda rich Leo Getz (Joe Pesci). At the same time they have to find a way to stop these South African diplomats who use their diplomatic immunity as cover to carry on with their shady shit. Now while this story works for the movie I feel that it somehow is less inspired than the original one. It might be my skepticism against sequels in general, but it doesn’t have the same time of *boom* as the first one had. Although I did find this plot functional and entertaining.

To compensate for the not overly inspired story we have some great characters. The chemistry between Riggs and Murtaugh is just as good as last time, if not even better. The supporting characters are also great and fill their roles well. I can however see how some people would maybe get a little annoyed by the character of Leo Getz, but I didn’t mind him, he worked in my opinion. Sure, the villains aren’t as interesting as Gary Busey & friends from the first movie, but they do well for this movie.

Once again the soundtrack was done by composers Michael Kamen, Eric Clapton and David Sanborn. And once again it was good and fit the different parts of the movie. There was a good use of general orchestra like most action movies with great guitar work by Clapton and great saxophone pieces by Sanborn. I really have nothing special to say, the music was pretty much the same as the first movie (in style). And I like that music!

Richard Donner was back to direct this movie and once again he shows that he is a good director with good camera work and overall direction. The action was also just as good as in the first movie. It was fast-paced, visceral, thrilling and badass. And there is a part late in the movie (no spoilers) that I swear they made a reference to in “Grand Theft Auto Five”. There were jsut too many similarities that I couldn’t let it slip, it was too similar to not think about. You who have both seen the movie and played the game know what I am talking about.

This movie was pretty well-received. On Rotten Tomatoes it has an 83% positive rating. On Metacritic it has a score of 70/100 (Sidenote: That is higher than what the first one got). Roger Ebert gave this movie 3,5/4 stars saying this;

“Lethal Weapon 2” is that rarity – a sequel with most of the same qualities as the original.

And on imdb.com it has a 7,2/10. The movie was also nominated for 1 Oscar in the category of Best sound effects editing. 

“Lethal Weapon 2” is entertaining, I will not deny that. I feel however though that the story was slightly less inspired (even if it worked) and that the villains weren’t as intertesting as in the first one. However the action is still great, thechemistry between the leads I would call even better than the first one and the music is still good. So time for my final score. *Explosion* My final score for “Lethal Weapon 2” is an 8,76/10. It is worth buying.

“Lethal Weapon 2” is now reviewed.

Whatever you need, Leo gets!