28 Days, Weeks Later Duology

Overall rating: 7.2/10
Genre: Horror
Overall value for money and time: 6.9/10

1. 28 Days Later

This is a zombie movie about survivors trying to stay alive 28 days later. This is not your typical zombie movie, at least initially it appeared to be so. The zombies are pro-class in this movie, the virus spreads almost instantly - one bite and you become a zombie in a blink of an eye. The zombies give chase by running frantically and they make all kinds of eerie sounds. However, this movie progressed towards a different perspective. The survivors start turning on themselves and only after this movie, you realise that humans are even scarier than the walking dead. Great movie reflecting the vulnerability and possibilites once the limits of humanity are broken.

2. 28 Weeks Later

While the prequel may boosts the rating for the duology, this sequel pulls it down. This movie showed how the impulsiveness of humans could bring about grave consequences. Throughout the movie, I was cursing and swearing, maybe I exaggerated a little, but you can't help but wonder how in the world could humans be so dumb. 28 weeks later, the last trace of the virus was supposedly gone. At least there was a quarentined city which ensured that no trace of virus was present. However, a young girl and his little brother wanted to remember their deceased mother with something by. Hence, they sneaked out of the quarentined area and back to their past house where they brought a trace of the virus back. You just can't help but wonder how absurd it is for the guards who saw them to take such a long time to track them down. I don't know about you, but there are many parts of the story that just doesnt make any sense. You may think that I risk spoiling the story with such indepth details about the movie, which I don't normally give, but in this case, keeping mum about such absurdities stand a higher chance of spoiling your mood should you decide to catch this movie. It wasn't an issue before, but in this movie I started to wonder about how impractical it was for the virus to spread so quickly as it takes time for a virus to spread throughout the blood stream and wreak havoc on the immune system... I kept thinking of absurdities in the movie and the more I thought, the more right I was, and the more right I was, the worst my impression of the movie was. While the first movie is worth watching, I would recommend that you stay away from this sequel. It may feel incomplete but it's almost the same case as for the "Butterfly Effect Duology". The sequel makes a bad name for the prequel. Give this movie a miss, to save the the prequel from shame!

The Covenant

Rating: 6.2/10
Genre: Action
Overall value for money and time: 5.5/10

This is just your average movie. The plot isn't fantastic and the ending is too abrupt. There's no character development in this film but at least it has some really cool stuff in it. A brotherhood of 4 teenagers have supernatural powers and while one tend to abuse it, the eldest tends to surpress it. There is a new transfer student who happens to be the 5th, but an outcasted member whose family was supposedly slain back in the past. He yearns to gain extreme power and slowly forces the eldest to give up his... The rationale behind all of this remains rather illogical and while watching the movie, lots of question marks starts popping out from my head. Still, it's a fairly decent movie to pass your free time with.

Spider-man Trilogy

Overall rating: 9.3/10
Genre: Action
Overall value for money and time: 9.5/10

1. Spider-Man

Based on the critically acclaimed Marvel comics, "Spider-Man" is about a student named Peter Parker who was bitten by a genetically modified spider. He soon gains spider-like abilities and realises that with great power, comes great responsibilities. The villian in this movie is Green Goblin. This movie has a good mix of romance, comedy, action and cool CG. The casting is great and the only drawback of this movie is the abrupt popping out of scenes of Green Goblin for the sole person of scaring you. This is the best Marvel trilogy produced so far, not that there's other trilogies but each movie in itself is a true blockbuster. For die hard fans of the Marvel comic, be fore-warned that this movie does not exactly follow the comic series. One such example is that Peter Parker was bitten by a radioactive spider in the comic book instead of a genetically modified spider. So watch this movie with an open mind.

2. Spider-Man 2

Spider-Man is finally together with the love of his life Mary Jane, but encounters yet another super villian, Dr Octopus. The ending is more unexpected for fans of the comic series as compared to those who do not follow it. I liked this sequel more than the first as there was more action scenes, as well as a more powerful villian. In the comics, Dr Octopus is far superior than Green Goblin. However, it might not appear so in this movie trilogy. Still, I prefer the villian compared to the first and the fact that Peter Parker is together with Mary Jane is in itself an unexpected twist from the comics. Even for someone who pinpoints little "mistakes" like these for the movie, it still stands out a great deal, not to mention one oblivious to the comic series. The CG is way cool and the personality conflict of Spider-Man brings out a more human touch to the movie than just another perfect superhero movie.

3. Spider-Man 3

In this final series, Spider-Man is faced with one of his greatest enemy ever - Venom. There's not one, not two, but 3 villians in this movie. Venom, Sandman and .... himself. Treat this trilogy like a roller coaster ride. When you see the poster of "Spider-Man", you build up great anticipation. When you board the roller coaster and it starts moving up the steep slope, that's the first movie. When it plunges down, that's movie 2. When it goes around in a loop, that's movie 3!! One of the few trilogies that get better with each sequel. Spider-Man returns as human-like as ever despite being a superhero and I must say, there's some real good touching moments in this film. Despite being an open ending, it's one that leaves a good feel to it. The CG in this sequel, action scenes and plot, are the most superior in this movie. You do get to learn a lot of life lessons from this trilogy as well. This is one trilogy that you either love it, or love it most!! (A moment of trivial: From what I can remember, Stan Lee, the creator of Marvel comics came on screen for a couple of minutes!! Be sure to keep a lookout for him!! A picture of him can be seen below.)

Pirates of the Caribbean Trilogy

Overall rating: 8.7/10
Genre: Action

Overall value for money and time: 8.4/10

1. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

Was never too fond of Johnny Depp only after this movie. I didn't even know he was the actor for Captain Jack Sparrow, a pirate captain who is determined to regain control of his ship, "The Black Pearl". He forms an alliance with Orlando Bloom to save Keira Knightley, the governor's daughter. The names, terms and plot of this trilogy is a little messy. I do not want to comment further on the plot of the story as I'm afraid of mixing them up in the other sequels. This is the breakthrough movie for Johnny Depp. Many have agreed that "Edward Scissorhands" was that movie, but not I. He is truly a Jack of all trades, and you learn to appreiciate this movie more due to his superbly convincing acting as a pirate, a very funny one I must add. An average plot, but a great insight into the realm of pirates. The focus of this movie was more on Johnny Depp.

2. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

I thought this was the best movie of the trilogy. The focus was more on Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley. The villian in this movie is just "savvy". He's immortal and the crew he controls are all monster looking like. There was the most action in this movie and the plot is on par with the first. Great CG, great acting as usual and great humour. The jokes are corny but welcoming. Unlike most trilogies, this is one where you could link everything up into one big gigantic movie. In order words, you can't really pinpoint the scenes, it just feels like they're all under "Pirates of the Caribbean".

3. Pirates of the Caribbean : At World's End

This is perhaps the worst movie of the trilogy. It's extremely confusing for me to watch and gives me no time to digest the plot. It just moves on and on until it's the end of the movie. And when you try to think back, nothing pops up for you to think about. Still, it retains the corny humour, great acting, great action element of this trilogy. It almost feels like there's a forth movie to this. I think it's a little overdone and it's good the way it is now, to stop at this final movie. One exception of such a movie is "Die Hard 4.0", which stands out more than the rest of its prequels.

Saw Quadrilogy

Overall rating: 9.5/10

Genre: Slasher

Overall value for money and time: 8.9/10

1. Saw

This movie was a dark horse for me. I managed to convince myself to stay away from it due to the gore I was told about by my friends' reviews. What they failed to inform me was the ending, a true masterpiece. Easily the best slasher movies of all, the plot bears the usual pyschotic killing spree of a typical slasher movie but non as skillfully produced. After this first installment of the quadrilogy, I was hooked to this movie. I came out utterly impressed at the end of each movie, and I'm 100% sure you will feel the same. The movie is about a man who's on the brink of death and plots ways to torture those who do not appreciate life. He names himself "Jigsaw" and the police are hot on his tracks to hunt him down. Be warned though, the torture scenes are sadistic, and there's a good load of gore in this movie, this quadrilogy. However, I recommend it strongly for the plot, for at the end of each installment, you will be certain no such movie ever produced in this genre will ever come close to this masterpiece.

2. Saw II

"Jigsaw" is back and he's out again to torture selected guinea pigs so that they can appreciate life better, if they survive. The victims in this film are a group of people, unlike the first movie which emphasized more on a doctor and a photographer. The ending is just as good as the first, but not as shocking. It has not 1 but 2 unpredictable outcomes. The casting never fails to be top rated. I believe this movie has the most gore in the quadrilogy series. Even the score is pleasing to the ears, not some eerie music played in "Pyscho" or "Jaws". Also, this movie does not make use of sudden bursts of volume to scare you, instead, it keeps your eyes glued to the screen by pulling you into the scenario, gradually building up for the ultimate finale. Not so much "jumping in your seats", but rather "moving around in your seats" kinda movie. Watch and be amazed, not to be shocked.

3. Saw III

"Jigsaw" is on the verge of death and his newly appointed successor gets to do the torturing. This movie may not be as good as the first 2 in terms of plot and ending but it is extremely necessary. It ties loose ends and answers any doubts you may have in the first 2 prequels. The reason I gave a lower rating for the "overall value for time and money" is cause you will not learn anything in this quadrilogy. This genre of movies might not be everyone's cup of tea, and while it may not appeal to the majority of audiences, if you're sick of senseless movies and dimwitted plots, this quadrilogy will blow you away. Take my word for it, at the end of it all, you will be singing praises of this masterpiece which will leave you with a long lasting impression.

4. Saw IV

This sequel is the goriest of all the others. The first 5 minutes of the movie is not for the faint hearted. I thought "Hannibal" was bad enough, this is the champ for gory movies I think. As one is already familiar with the producer's work of having an unpredictable plot and ending, this movie isn't quite as good as the first 3. Still, it does appeal to one in one way or another (not referring to the graphic scenes) as it does also tie some loose ends in the first 3 prequels. However, I personally think the producer should have stopped at the 3rd. The 4th doesn't quite answer your doubts, and may even produce more of it at the end of the movie. This movie is about the detective from part 2 being trapped and he's the new victim. The bulk of victims, the guinea pigs in this movie is mostly the other detectives.

The Devil's Rejects Duology

Overall rating: 5.2/10
Genre: Slasher
Overall value for money and time: 4.5/10

1. House of 1000 Corpses

Caught this movie after watching it's sequel just to complete this critique and I must tell you, this movie is just plain disappointing. The rating above only applies for "The Devil's Rejects". Since I've already rated it, I do not want to mark down the rating. If you must know, this movie only gives a 3.0/10 rating due to the ridiculous cinematography and boring plot. One might be misleaded to see close to a 1000 corpses in this movie but all it showed was that the house was used to torture about 20 victims or so. Downright dull and predictable plot with bad casting and almost unconvincing acting. The victims are not able to create emphathy due to their lack of acting skills and you just can't help but think to youself "Hurry up, get over with it and just die." Cinematography wise, it's almost similar to "House of the Dead", where weird and irritating flashes of distracting scenes appear throughout the movie, which was redundant and gives a cheap production feel. This movie just goes to show how lame and dumb Rob Zombie movies are and gives me a second thought to watching his latest horror movie "Halloween". In this movie, 2 teenage couples go on a trip to write a book about roadside attractions and ended up as victims to the infamous Dr. Satan's family.

2. The Devil's Rejects

This movie is a sequel to the "House of 1000 Corpses". Not knowing what it was since I didn't watch the first installment, I jumped into a cinema with my friends after catching a glimpse of the poster. I was flabbergastered! I had never seen anything like this movie in my life before. That's lots of gore, vulgarities, sick rape and nudity, and the worst thing of all... This movie portrays the 3 pyschos to be the "heroes" of the movie. The whole movie is all about them. Even the ending was grand... not the "heroes" kinda of grand but the "villians" kinda grand. It left me speechless when the credits came up. I hated that movie. However, after thinking back on it, I saw it from a different point of view. I still dislike that movie, but not to the extend of hating it. Well, you never get movies showing how "great" the bad guys are. I have to give the director credit for his bold attempt to break that barrier. It isn't that bad a movie, just one that's "yin", to my "yang".

The Hills Have Eyes Duology

Overall rating: 5.9/10

Genre: Slasher

Overall value for money and time: 5.4/10

1. The Hills Have Eyes

This movie has every definition of a typical slasher movie. With a rather corny story and built up, I would give this movie a miss. Well, curiosity killed the cat, which was the reason why I caught it in the first place. I wouldn't say I regret ever watching it, but it's just one that doesn't leave you any impression of it after the movie. It's like a watch and forget movie. The story revolves around a family who passes the desert where they meet up with mutated humans. The family are unable to leave the desert and are hunted down, raped and tore apart one by one by the humanlike creatures. The rape screen was very disturbing for me. I felt so helpless and pissed off. Luckily, there's an unexpected hero in this movie who manages to bring down the creatures one by one - payback.

2. The Hills Have Eyes II

This sequel is about a group of dumbass army trainees lost in the same desert with the mutated humans. This movie is even cornier than the first. It brings more forced laughter than squirmy scenes. No thinking is required for this movie. Passable as a late night weekday movie.