Lethal Weapon

One line review: A film that works great as a buddy comedy, but hits far too many action cliches as the plot unfolds.

Movie Title: Lethal Weapon

Actors: Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Gary Busey, Mitch Ryan, Tom Atkins, Darlene Love, Traci Wolfe, Jackie Swanson, Damon Hines, Ebonie Smith

Director: Richard Donner

Year: 1987

Genre: Action

Method of Viewing: TV

Location of Viewing: Home

Viewing with: Family

Rotten Tomatoes: 90% – The most successful installment in a phenomenally successful series, Lethal Weapon helped redefine action movies for the 1980s and 1990s.

My rating: ***

My assessment (the first 101 words at least): This movie started as an absolutely fantastic buddy comedy with one of the best pairings I’ve ever seen. However, as the plot began to unfold, the overused tricks and plot holes began to show.As the movie wore on, I began to forget how much I loved the buddy cop beginning, and instead just became more and more annoyed as the plot became absolutely ridiculous. I wish this movie simply had more interaction between Mel Gibson and Danny Glover than an actual overriding plot. Perhaps if I had watched this movie in the 80s, I wouldn’t have been annoyed at the cliches.

Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut

One line review: A film that once again suffers from over an hour of plot holes and stupidity before finally getting to some decent superhero action.

Movie Title: Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut

Actors: Gene Hackman, Christopher Reeve, Marlon Brando, Ned Beatty, Jackie Cooper, Sarah Douglas, Margot Kidder, Jack O’Halloran, Valerie Perrine, Clifton James, E.G. Marshall, Marc McClure, Terence Stamp

Director: Richard Donner

Year:[Superman II] 1980 / [Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut] 2006

Genre: Action / Adventure

Method of Viewing: DVD

Location of Viewing: Home

Viewing with: No One

Rotten Tomatoes: [Superman II] 87% – The humor occasionally stumbles into slapstick territory, and the special effects are dated, but Superman II meets, if not exceeds, the standard set by its predecessor.

[Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut] 83% – This version of Superman II is a triumph of intention, sending the imagination soaring again over this new angle on a very old question mark.

My rating: **

My assessment (the first 101 words at least): I simply can’t understand why either of the two Superman movies I saw are considered so good. If this is considered good I can only dread what the sequels would hold in store for me. There are enough plot holes in this movie to make my mind melt, there are enough stupid actions by characters to make me wish I could smack each and every one of them up side the head. I’m now convinced that there is no live action movie that truly captures Superman, they seem too busy trying to make Superman a comedy rather than an action movie.

Superman

One line review: A superhero movie that seems to be short on action, and big on Superman’s boring origin.

Movie Title: Superman

Actors: Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, Christopher Reeve, Ned Beatty, Jackie Cooper, Glenn Ford, Trevor Howard, Margot Kidder, Jack O’Halloran, Valerie Perrine, Maria Schell, Terence Stamp, Phyllis Thaxter, Susannah York, Jeff East

Director: Richard Donner

Year: 1978

Genre: Action / Adventure

Method of Viewing: DVD

Location of Viewing: Home

Viewing with: No One

Rotten Tomatoes: 93% – Superman deftly blends humor and gravitas, taking advantage of the perfectly cast Christopher Reeve to craft a loving, nostalgic tribute to an American pop culture icon.

My rating: **

My assessment (the first 101 words at least): It first has to be said that I didn’t watch the original film, I saw the director’s cut. Perhaps that why I felt this movie spent far too much time on Jor-El, or young Kal El, rather than just telling a Superman story. In the end, Superman’s story is not interesting, and somehow this movie made it even less interesting. Only after Superman starts acting like Superman did I start to enjoy this movie, and even then it was over too soon. It’s also difficult to forgive this movie’s numerous plot holes and silly special effects. This movie hasn’t aged well.

The Goonies

One line review: A fantastic tale that is only entertaining for children.

Movie Title: The Goonies

Actors: Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Jeff Cohen, Corey Feldman, Kerri Green, Martha Plimpton, Jonathan Ke Quan, John Matuszak, Robert Davi

Director: Richard Donner

Year: 1985

Genre: Comedy / Adventure

Method of Viewing: TV

Location of Viewing: Home

Viewing with: No One

Rotten Tomatoes: 64% – The Goonies is a smooth mixture of the usual ingredients from Steven Spielberg action movies, made special because of the high-energy performances of the kids who have the adventures.

My rating: ***

My assessment (the first 101 words at least): This movie works only as a movie for young children (despite the random cursing thrown in). Kids will be thrilled by the constant challenges and adventures the Goonies go through, however there is little else to be enjoyed. It’s actually quite disappointing, since so many of the great children’s movies that I’ve watched seem to have at least something for adults to enjoy. However, this movie barely has a central plot, and instead simply has a series of crazy, scary, and fantastic events. Still, I can strongly recommend this movie for any child, they’ll absolutely be entertained from start to finish.