And here we are with a new movie season under way, and a whole new potential flock of hit makers, hit breakers… and flops.

As we look back to the previous season of movies, let’s remember that hope springs eternal. I personally am looking forward to the new season, and also the GOLDEN MOON AWARDS as well. I’m already pouring through the movies, and have already sent in my nomination ballot to the AWARDS COMMITTEE. Until the nominations are out… let’s get on with the new movies for this week.

FEATURED ATTRACTION:

NAGASAKI DAYDREAMS is a touching, and turbulent look into the life of a man, and the catastrophic events that affect him. His life is so wrought with many choices, some good, some bad… and many that we can identify with.

Clint Eastwood has yet again made an exceptional masterpiece of a motion picture, which weaves a tapestry of emotions and resonates throughout the viewers. The culmination of this story is the ultimate tragedy… the dropping of the atomic bomb on Nagasaki.

This story tells the tale of Nagaharu, a man whose life is filled with doubts, the turmoil of his wife suicide attempt, the emotions that a parent feels during a war with the potential loss of their son, the loss of self esteem one feels not being able to find work, and his affair with the lovely Sayanna (played by Ziyi Zhang).

Just when everything finally starts to set itself right, and there appears to be light at the end of the tunnel… The ultimate catastrophe of war enters his life.

There was more side to WWII than just the side of the victors. In all wars, no matter who wins or losses, this film ultimately proves one thing, that there are actually no real winners in war... there are only casualties.

For me, NAGASAKI DAYDREAMS is a masterpiece, and Marcus Trax has a well-written screenplay. All in all, I see NAGASAKI DAYDREAMS this way:

Originality of Screenplay




Interest of Storyline




Casting




This film in my opinion really deserves a FIVE STARS across the board!!!

ON DVD, FROM CRAZY MOON PICTURES…

CAPTAIN AMERICA: DESTINY… The destiny of this DVD is probably to gather dust on the shelf. This is “swan song” of the film franchise, hits the shelf with a resounding… THUD!!!

The death of the major character effects what happens to the box office draw, and when the word got out about the death of the comic book icon of CAPTAIN AMERICA… the movie going public spoke. They spoke with the unwillingness to spend their hard-earned box office ticket dollars.

Although I saw some glimmering points to this film, ultimately the film fell short at all turns. If you bought CAPTAIN AMERICA, as well as CAPTAIN AMERICA VS SUPERMAN, you might want to buy it just so you can own the complete set. However, my personal recommendation for this DVD is…

RENT IT!!!

It is okay to watch it once, but doesn’t really possess any replay value to speak of.

Like I said in my previous review; KING OF THE WORLD… I don’t think so.

Although it’s a pretty good concept for a film, much of the thing that makes this film inferior can be found in the casting of Eva Mendes. Personally, I felt that this was not a good choice for the role. Okay, is she beautiful? SURE… She gorgeous! She is also an actress that has a limited range, and needs to stay within that range.

Vince Vaughn is also an actor that I also feel has a “limited range”, and in this film… he stays within that range perfectly.

Like him or not, it’s the type of a role he has “typecast” himself into, and he’s probably laughing at all of us… and laughing all of the way to the bank, as he deposits the check.

All in all, I see KING OF THE WORLD as a big…

RENT IT!!!

ALSO, COMING TO A THEATER NEAR YOU… FROM CRAZY MOON PICTURES:


I never thought I’d hear myself say this…

GEORGE LUCAS… WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?

The franchise rights must have cost him a fortune, and I really don’t see this film having a great deal of appeal, except to perhaps the NINTENDO fans out there.

This film has a lot of “eye candy”, but is really not much more than that. It takes many of the “staple characters” from the world of NINTENDO like the SUPER MARIO BROS., MEGAMAN, SONIC THE HEDGEHOG (originally from the SEGA system) and LINK, and suffers from the same problem that many of these sorts of action adventure films fall prey to… TOO MANY VILLIANS!!!

Also, yet again… we have another film reference to the character of “The One”. The person, foretold in the "prophecy”… BLAH… BLAH… BLAH… YADDA… YADDA… YADDA…

All in all, this film doesn’t offer a lot of meat for a movie carnivore to sink his teeth into, there’s really just a lot of gristle and bone offered up on the plate. The plot is weak, the villains are too numerous, and “The One” is overdone.

There is one great thing about this film though… the voice talent of John Leguizamo. As the voices of both of the heroic plumbers (MARIO & LUIGI), they are just different enough to mesmerize you, and he shows us his underestimated range of talent, which just seems to be… limitless.

I see GAMEBOY: SOULS OF THE USA…

Originality of Screenplay




Interest of Storyline

Casting




WRAPPING UP…

Well, I’ve got my tickets… and I’m getting ready for the GOLDEN MOON AWARDS. It promises to be a great gala event, and I am looking forward to my first visit. I guess this means I’m going to have to rent a tuxedo.

I’ll also be doing my AWARDS PREVIEW EDITION on or about June 16th, after the announcements of the nominees, so look for it soon. So, until next time…

Go to the lobby, get yourself a large popcorn and a drink, and…

SEE YOU IN THE MOVIES!!!