• 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)
  • Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003)
  • The Day After Tomorrow (2004)
  • The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)
  • The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
  • The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
  • Minority Report (2002)
  • Out of Time (2003)
  • Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
  • Spider-Man 2 (2004)
  • Van Helsing (2004)
  • X2: X-Men United (2003)

    		 Spider-Man 2 - July 8, 2004 - [12-16-04]

    Cast: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, & Alfred Molina

    [ Official Site - Spider-Man Hype! - TheSpiderManMovie.com ]

    Overall Grade: A

    Spidey returns for his 2nd adventure on the big screen & faces off against Dr. Octopus. The story picks up 2 years after the 1st film left off. Now Peter Parker is in college & living in a dump of an apartment. Due to his late night actions as Spider Man, Peter has a hard time keeping up with his schoolwork & keeping a job. He is also having a difficult time with friends & family. Harry, now in charge of his father's company, is still good friends with Peter but has a deep hatred for Spider-Man & is seeking revenge on the webslinger for killing his father (The Green Goblin). MJ, tired of being stood up & rejected by Peter, gets engaged to another man. And Aunt May, still dealing with the loss of her husband, can't afford to keep the house she has been living in. Meanwhile, Peter is struggling with the decision to continue being Spider Man while sacrificing all other aspects of his life or giving up the red & blue suit to pursue his own happiness. One of Peter's idols, Dr. Otto Octavius, while trying to find a new source of power, is transformed into Doc Ock when 4 tentacles with minds of their own are attached to his spine. He wrecks havoc while trying to continue his experiment & Spider-Man is the only one that can stop him.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Some people have said that this is better than the original. I'm not sure if I agree or not but it was definitely very good. There was plenty of action, including the fight scenes between Dr. Octopus & Spider-Man, but not too much. It kept the story moving along nicely. There were also bits of humor thrown in here & there as well as the love story between MJ & Peter.
  • Cast - It's good that all of the major characters/actors returned for the 2nd film. Even Bruce Campbell (wrestling ring announcer in Spider-Man 1), showed up in a cameo as an usher. Everyone else did well, especially newcomer Alfred Molina as Doc Ock.

    ----- NOT -----

  • [12-16-04] - There were some slower parts that could be boring for some people
  • [12-16-04] - They could have made Doc Ock more interesting & explored his character a bit more than they did.
  • SPOILER ALERT - [It didn't make any sense to me that all of the Green Goblin stuff was in that secret room. The hover-board thingie, the mask, and everything else...how did they get there if he died with them at the end of the last one??? Did he have extras? I don't think he did. Or maybe Spider-Man was being nice and put it all back after the Goblin died? LoL. Another thing that sucked was that tons of people found out that Peter is Spider-Man. Doc Ock, MJ, Harry, and about 40 people in the train. There goes that secret identity. And yeah, I was hoping someone would kill MJ at the end...maybe Harry as the Goblin with one of those balls...but it didn't happen! Grr!]

    		 The Day After Tomorrow - June 1, 2004

    Cast: Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhaal, & Emmy Rossum

    [ Official Site ]

    Overall Grade: B -

    It was hyped as one of the biggest disaster movies ever made...but it fell far short of all expectations. It takes a look at what might happen if the problems with the ozone (greenhouse effect & global warming) continued to get worse. Tornadoes wiping out L.A., hailstones the size of basketballs, and a huge tidal wave hitting New York...followed by the next Ice Age. Dennis Quaid is the scientist who figures out what is going on but he is ignored by the government, resulting in many more casualties than there should have been. At the same time, his son gets caught by the natural disasters in New York City while competing in a scholastic competition. The rest of the film focuses on Quaid's mission to save his son while the rest of humanity tries to survive.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Special Effects - The biggest plus about this movie was the CGI & special effects. I believe that it saved the movie from being a complete disaster itself. Even though the majority of the FX scenes were too short and were shown in the previews, they added to an otherwise dull film. Many people were disappointed in the wolves, which were computer generated, but everything else was great. Tidal waves, hail, tornadoes, ice, massive destruction....good stuff.

    ----- NOT -----

  • This does NOT live up to disaster movies withint he past 10 years or so like Independence Day, Armageddon, Deep Impact, & The Core. Those movies just had a lot more interesting things going on.
  • Dumb Stuff - All of the weather/technical speak & jibber jabber really got on my nerves. People were stupid and decided to walk in the frigid cold weather & die instead of staying put. And Dennis Quaid walking from Philly to NY in the icy cold & snow in like 1 day?? Not sure exactly how he intended on saving his son from the weather but whatever.

    		 Van Helsing - May 12, 2004

    Cast: Hugh Jackman, Kate Beckinsale, & Richard Roxburgh

    [ Official Site ]

    Overall Grade: C

    Here it is! The start of the blockbuster summer movie season for 2004! I was looking forward to seeing this film for a while and despite mixed reviews from critics, I wasn't going to back out. The story is set in the 19th century where Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman), a famous monster hunter, is sent to Transylvania to battle some of the most famous movie monsters, including Dracula himself. Other monsters are The Wolfman, Frankenstein's Monster, Igor, Dracula's Brides, and Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde. In the meantime, Van Helsing tries to solve the mystery of his past, which he has no memory of. When he arrives in Transylvania, he joins forces with Anna (Kate Beckinsale), who is the last survivor of a long family line dedicated to destroying Dracula.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Action - Just by seeing the previews, it is obvious that this is an action movie. As a matter of fact, it is so jammed full of action that you may have a hard time keeping up with what is going on. There is barely a break between action scenes, which could either leave you dazed, confused, and annoyed OR have you on the edge of your seat wanting more. It all depends on how much action you can take in one seating. At some points, I was somewhat annoyed by the constant in-your-face action...but since I was pretty tired at the time, I'll give the movie the benefit of the doubt. This is a high-octane popcorn movie, plain & simple. If you are expecting anything more, you will be disappointed. Overall, the action is good.
  • Monsters - The collection of monsters is probably what makes this film so attractive to most people. Bringing them all together is an interesting premise that, although it has been done before, always seems to work.
  • Visuals - Some may argue that the visuals are cheesy or bad but they are fine. The location and costumes are great. The CGIs are good enough. No, this isn't LOTR type of computer animation but it serves it's purpose.
  • Cast - Not the best actors in the world but the action & their looks overshadow that. Hugh Jackman is cool. I think he is much better as Wolverine in the X-Men movies though. Kate Beckinsale is the total hottie. I really didn't like her accent here but she is tolerable because she's so adorable. The 3 Brides of Dracula were also great eye candy. These women were drop dead gorgeous, possibly models. They show that this film isn't here for depth...it was made to be appealing to the senses.

    ----- NOT -----

  • Length - Although it is filled with action, the movie does seem to drag on forever.
  • SPOILER ALERT - [Kate Beckinsale dies at the end! FFS! They kill my honey. :o( It doesn't make a whole lot of sense as she did superhuman things during the entire movie & escaped near death experiences time after time only to be killed at the end. Pisses me off. And the whole thing with her family in the sky was gay.]
  • I know I said the action was good. But some of it was just ridiculous, over-the-top, Matrix/Charlie's Angels, annoying action. It was silly to see some of the things that these supposed humans could do. At times, they piled it on way too much. There was no time for any dramatic or interesting moments in between all of the action.
  • Dracula was annoying.
  • When exactly did they have the Batman weapons in the 19th century? And for that matter, when were women that full of makeup and that beautiful during that time frame?
  • Mythology - Some people are angry at how these monsters and their mythology was altered and, in some cases, completely given a facelift. Their weaknesses, their transformations, and and their look were re-invented. One example is how the werewolf transforms back and forth every time the clouds cover the moon. I personally don't have a problem with it because these ARE fictional characters and it doesn't really matter if they are given a new look. But some people disagree.

    		Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl - January 31, 2004

    Cast: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, & Geoffrey Rush

    [ Official Site - PotC Fandom - Captain Jack Sparrow ]

    Overall Grade: A

    Pirates of the Caribbean is one of the most popular and famous rides at the Disney theme parks. It's only a 8-10 minute boat ride through the dark in which guests are taken through a short story about pirates attacking a city. From this, they came up with a movie that runs almost 2 and a half hours. Before I walked into the theater, I was thinking there is no way this movie could be anything that special with only a short ride as material to work with. I was wrong. There is no shortage of action in this movie, whether it be pirates attacking the city, 2 ships trading cannon-fire, or just a good, old-fashioned sword fight. There is plenty of it to go around. Throw in some romance & comedy and you have yourself a fun time! There are even a couple of classic scenes from the ride thrown in for all of us Disney-holics. The story follows the growing romance between Elizabeth Swann, the governer's daughter, and a man, Will Turner, who she helped rescue when he was a boy. However, a group of pirates seeking a piece of gold that Will had when he was a boy, attack the city and capture Elizabeth, taking her with them on their voyage. Luckily for Will, Captain Jack Sparrow, the only man who can catch the pirates has just arrived in town. The two of them chase the pirates in an attempt to rescue Elizabeth and reclaim Jack's ship, the Black Pearl. We also find out that the entire crew of the Black Pearl has been cursed and are a group of undead skeletons. Will the pirates be able to break the curse? Will Elizabeth be rescued? Watch it in order to find out!

    ----- HOT -----

  • Johnny Depp - he definitely steals the show! I was a HUGE fan of 21 Jump Street and hadn't really liked too much of what I had seen of him since. But this role was great. At times, it is hard to understand what he is saying due to his pirate accent but he is still funny and did a very good job.
  • Being a Walt Disney World nut, I really liked the 2 or 3 scenes they took from the ride and incorporated into the movie.
  • The overall presentation. If you are in the mood for a fun, action-packed movie that will also make you laugh, this one is for you. I really liked this movie, which surprised me. I thought it would be too long and very boring. It was a little long but it was fast-paced and had a lot of laughs to keep my attention. By the time it was over, I didn't want it to end. The story was original and entertaining.
  • The rest of the cast. Orlando Bloom came off of the incredibly successful Lord of the Rings and made his presence felt. He shows he can do more than be an elf who shoots arrows with extreme accuracy as he did in LOTR. He is still forced into a supporting role here with the presence of Depp but his character is likeable. Keira Knightley plays the damsel in distress and, for the most part, that's all she is. But she does it well. And, of course, she is extremely cute so that helps. Rounding out the cast is Geoffrey Rush, who plays the evil leader of the cursed pirates. He does an awesome job and is ruthless and scary.
  • Visual Effects. It wasn't The Matrix but it was enough and blended into the story well. The most obvious was the "skeleton" crew of pirates. But everything else, from the explosions to cannon-fire, worked well.
  • The monkey. He was sooo cute!

    ----- NOT -----

  • Length. The movie ran a little long but it wasn't really that big of a deal. I think some of the swordfights went longer than they needed to.

    		 The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers - January 9, 2004

    Cast: Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, & Ian McKellen

    [ Official Site - TheOneRing.net - TolkienMovies.com ]

    Overall Grade: A

    The 2nd film of the trilogy follows Sam & Frodo on their quest to Mordor to destroy the ring. They are joined by Gollum, an awesome computer generated character, who was a previous holder of the ring and, thus, has a dark side. In the meantime, Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli hunt down the orcs who kidnapped Merry & Pippin. The rest of the film leads up to an incredible battle at Helm's Deep, where thousands of Sauron's soldiers attempt to destroy one of the last remaining kingdoms that oppose Sauron.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Helm's Deep - The special effects and visuals were top notch. This is the climactic battle at the end of the movie, which, in a way, is the grand finale. This final battle in the film was HUGE and well done.
  • Gollum - He is introduced in The Fellowship very briefly but he makes a bigger appearance and takes on a larger role here. He is my new favorite character.
  • Story - I didn't totally appreciate this movie until I watched it for a second time. It also helped to have the DVD and all of the behind the scenes stuff to better understand how it was all brought to life. I found myself eagerly anticipating the 3rd film after I was done with this one

    ----- NOT -----

  • Length - Long. Slow at ceratin parts...even a little boring sometimes.

    		 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - January 9, 2004

    Cast: Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, & Ian McKellen

    [ Official Site - TheOneRing.net - TolkienMovies.com ]

    Overall Grade: A

    The final installment of the trilogy ends the series with a bang. Sauron's forces wage an all-out assault on Minas Tirith, the capital of Gondor, in his final attempt to end all of mankind. Aragorn struggles with his destiny to rise up and become King while Gandalf leads the forces of Gondor. Impossibly outnumbered, the forces of men bravely battle the forces of evil in an effort to give Frodo enough time to destroy the Ring. In the meantime, Frodo, Sam, and Gollum continue towards Mount Doom but greed and danger soon divide them.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Gollum - Without a doubt, one of, if not, the best computer generated characters to date. I loved him in the 2nd film a little more than this one but he is still my favorite. It is even more amazing when you see how much work was put into the character. Andy Serkis, who has a quick scene in the beginning as Smeagol, does the voice for Gollum but also does his scenes. They shot scenes 3 or 4 different ways to make Gollum come to life. Serkis acted out all of the scenes. Then his movements and facial expressions were transferred on to the CGI. Really interesting!
  • Directing - Once again, Peter Jackson does a great job. He turned an epic story into 9 hours of cinematic history...something many people doubted could be done. He told the story very very well.
  • Special Effects/Visuals - The battles in this film may be even better than those in The Two Towers. They are HUGE! All of the creatures, such as the orcs, trolls, Gollum, the giant spider, etc....they were all great and realistic. And the different locations were enough to make you feel as though Middle-Earth actually exists. From the beautiful and peaceful Elven city of Rivendell to the Battle of Pelennor Fields to the fiery insides of Mount Doom, every scene was created wonderfully.
  • The acting - Not everyone was GREAT but the cast as a whole did a nice job. There were many good performances, most of which were overshadowed by the special effects. Sean Astin did a wonderful job as Sam and Ian McKellen, who I have grown to like very much through both this and the X-Men series, delivers another strong performance.
  • Story - Tolkien created a wonderful world with so many different characters so it is no wonder why many consider it to be a masterpiece. There was tons of action and the story with Frodo/Sam/Gollum was more interesting than in the previous film too. Looking back to when I first saw the previews for the 1st LOTR movie and thinking "That looks dumb", I am pleased to say I enjoyed the series very much.
  • Score - As in most epic films, the music was beautiful and memorable.

    ----- NOT -----

  • Length - It was a bit long which forced me to keep shifting positions in the theater due to my aching butt.

    		 Out of Time - January 9, 2004

    Cast: Denzel Washington, Sanaa Lathan, Eva Mendes, & Dean Cain

    [ Official Site ]

    Overall Grade: B

    Denzel Washington is the chief of police in a small town in Florida. He is in the process of getting a divorce and, at the same time, having an affair with a high-school sweetheart who is married to an abusive ex-football player. Eventually, there is a murder and Denzel is the prime suspect. To make matters even worse, his soon-to-be-ex wife/homicide detective comes to town to work on the case. Denzel spends the rest of the film trying to stay one step ahead of the investigation, avoiding the DEA (who are on his case for evidence money that he gave away), and keeping clear of various witnesses who can identify and link him to the murder.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Cast - I thought the entire cast did a good job. Denzel is a great actor and I like pretty much all of his movies. John Billingsley, who plays the medical examiner, is the comic relief and is probably the most entertaining person in this movie. And Dean Cain did well as the bad guy.
  • Story - This one took a little time to get rolling but once it did, it held my interest. Denzel's narrow escapes from situations that would have ruined him makes you laugh at how silly it all is but it's good fun. All in all...it's a decent thriller

    ----- NOT -----

  • Unrealistic - It wasn't a very believable movie and was also predictable at some parts. Some of the characters aren't too bright and do some really stupid things.

    		 The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen - January 7, 2004

    Cast: Sean Connery, Peta Wilson, & Stuart Townsend

    [ Official Site ]

    Overall Grade: B -

    In an effort to stop the bad guys and save the world, a team of famous fictional literary characters is brought together. Allan Quatermain, Captain Nemo, The Invisible Man, Mina Harker (Vampire), Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde, Tom Sawyer, and Dorian Gray make up the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen...LXG for short. Although many of them don't get along or like each other, they must work together in order to prevent Venice from being blown sky-high by a mysterious masked madman known as The Fantom. The LXG travels in Nemo's Nautilus during their adventure, uncovering a secret plot along the way. From gun battles to collapsing buildings to a battle between 2 huge monsters...the action is always flowing.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Overall - I'm not too sure this was a really good movie but it was paced well enough to keep me interested. The different abilities of the characters was cool but didn't live up to either of the two X-Men movies. It was pretty much all action. There isn't too much character development or realism.

    ----- NOT -----

  • Most people complain that the movie butchers the characters & story. If you are a purist who likes the characters to stay a certain way, then you will probably hate this film. The filmmakers decided to change & remodel some aspects of the story & the characters in order to make it more likeable to audiences. They even threw in Tom Sawyer, who wasn't even involved in the original story.
  • The ending was dumb.

    		 X2: X-Men United - July 8, 2003

    Cast: Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Famke Janssen, & Halle Berry

    [ Official Site ]

    Overall Grade: A

    A man known as Stryker wants to wipe every mutant off of the face of the planet due to a tragic incident with his mutant son. He has soldiers invade the school and kidnap some of the students...and Professor Xavier is abducted as well. All of it is part of his master plan to use Professor X to destroy all mutants on earth with his own version of Cerebro. In the meantime, Magneto breaks out of his plastic prison with some help from Mystique and teams up with Wolverine, Storm, and the rest of the X-Men to defeat Stryker. Some new mutants are introduced as well....Pyro, Nightcrawler, and Iceman (who played a small part in the original). As they all race to save Professor X & all of mankind, Wolverine finds the answers to the questions he has about his past.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Cast - All of the same people from the first movie return to their roles and a few new ones join as well. Stewart & McKellan are the older, wiser leaders and while they don't get tons of camera time, they still make an impact in the scenes they are in. Janssen, Marsden, and Berry all had major roles in the 1st film but aren't seen much here. Jackman as Wolverine gets the most screen time as the movie revolves around him discovering the secrets of his past. But that's OK cuz Wolverine is awesome! The younger stars...Paquin, Stanford, & Ashmore...add their part as Rogue, Pyro, and Iceman. Cumming plays a crucial role as Nightcrawler & Hu (Lady Deathstrike) has a great fight scene at the end of the movie with Wolverine. Oh, and let's not forget Rebecca Romijn-Stamos...yum yum!
  • Overall - The story was pretty good although it may be confusing to some. There was plenty of action to keep you entertained and the special effects and mutant powers were pretty cool.

    ----- NOT -----

  • One of the negatives was the fact that there were so many characters, it was impossible to see any particular one very much.
  • SPOILER ALERT - [The other thing that sucked was Jean Grey, who was in both movies, was killed. Blah. Apparently, in the comics, she does come back though. Hopefully she'll be in X3.]

    		 Minority Report - July 8, 2003

    Cast: Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, & Max Von Sydow

    [ Official Site - Precrime.org - DreamWorks Fansite ]

    Overall Grade: A -

    Based 50 years in the future, a new unit of the police, appropriately named "pre-crime", has wiped out murders in Washington D.C. It uses 3 psychics, known as "pre-cogs", to project images of murders in the future allowing the police to arrest the people before they commit the crime. The head detective in charge of the pre-crime unit, John Anderton (Tom Cruise), is still grieving over the kidnapping & possible murder of his young son, which led to the deterioration of his marriage. It is also the reason he became involved in the pre-crime program, hoping to prevent others from experiencing the same loss. But when Anderton sees in one of the visions that he is going to murder someone who he has never met, he is on the run. He looks for answers as to who could have set him up while, at the same time, avoiding the police unit that he has led for so long.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Overall - For those that get confused thinking about time travel, changing the future, and all of that junk....this movie may have you lost. There was a good amount of action & the mystery surrounding Anderton killing someone is interesting.
  • Cast - I absolutely hated Cruise's last big film, Vanilla Sky, so I was glad he got back on my good side...he's lucky. Colin Farrell was cool as Cruise's rival.

    ----- NOT -----

  • The big thing I didn't like about this movie is that it was a bit too long and seemed to drag on at a few points.

    		 2 Fast 2 Furious - July 7, 2003

    Cast: Paul Walker, Tyrese Gibson, & Eva Mendes

    [ Official Site ]

    Overall Grade: C

    The plot here is simple...drive fast, take off shirt, show abs, show off car, drive fast. Actually, Paul Walker is an ex-cop named Brian who makes a living as a street racer in Miami. The police ask him to go undercover, along with his old bud Roman, played by Tyrese. Their mission is to become drivers for a big crime boss & help the FBI catch him. In return, Brian will be re-instated & Roman will have his record cleared. They get involved in a number of long-winded car chases in which other cars are crushed or smashed up. They also meet up with an undercover woman (Mendes), who has been sleeping with the crime lord in an attempt to gain enough info to nab him.

    ----- HOT -----

  • Action - The action (car chases/races) was pretty good. It kept moving and didn't drag on or lull at all. I wasn't bored...I enjoyed it...just not the best movie I have seen in the past month. Remember, it IS a sequel...and sequels usually don't live up to the original.

    ----- NOT -----

  • Overall - I didn't see the first one so it's hard for me to compare the two of them. Let me tell you something...if you're young and you're into hot cars and/or "hot" guys, you'll think this movie is extremely kick-ass. But if you're like me and you like there to be somewhat of a story, you'll think this movie is so-so. Don't get me wrong, the cars are really nice and it was better than I expected. But for those that think this is one of the greatest movies of all time just because there are nice cars in it...you need to get a hobby. It was average...plain and simple. It's a brainless action flick...period. Sorry to burst the bubbles of all the teenie boppers and car lovers who think this bad boy is deserving of some kind of award...but the only people who will think it is the biggest, greatest hit of the summer are the ones who don't look beyond the surface of anything.
  • Acting - I like Paul Walker...he's not the greatest actor ever but his charisma is great and he is likeable. But the characters in this movie were just so dull. The dialogue was horrible...the acting mediocre.

    		 Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle - July 7, 2003

    Cast: Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, & Lucy Liu

    [ Official Site ]

    Overall Grade: C

    The Angels (Lucy Liu, Cameron Diaz, and Drew Barrymore) are back & are still taking orders from Charlie via speakerphone. This time around, they are in search of two rings that have the identities of people on the witness protection program. During their adventure, they come across various characters, including Demi Moore as an Angel-gone-bad. They rescue agents, shake their booties as strippers, investigate a crime scene, fight, and still have time for their boyfriends.

    ----- HOT -----

  • The Girls - The Angels were all smokin', including Demi Moore, who showed her face, and her body. Even at 40, she is still looking good. Cameron Diaz showed off her very nice ass but her extremely annoying giggle kinda made me forget about the amount of skin the girls showed.
  • Action - Although sometimes very fake looking, the action scenes were strung together well enough to keep me from being bored. It kept my attention and had a lot of action but it wasn't spectacular...just decent.

    ----- NOT -----

  • This is another one of those expensive ass movies with tons of special effects and crap. I didn't see the 1st one so maybe I missed out on something there. But seriously, this was another average movie. The whole "girl power" theme kinda got retarded sometimes and the effort by all movies to now go over the top and out-do The Matrix with ridiculous, unrealisitc scenes has been injected here as well. At times, it felt like the human version of the Powerpuff Girls and at other times you think you are watching The Matrix: Part 7. If you don't take it too seriously, it's ok.