Rating: Summary: What a Concept! Review: An enjoyable film, and the reason is simple, lots of action. It is the use of the notion that all human life is at the brink of extinction as the dinosaurs were before us that causes a struggle for the survival of human kind. Moreover, the film brought the circular pattern of life to the screen in many different ways, which enhanced the cinematic experience to a more cerebral level. Intertwined with the circular pattern of life were some psychological predicaments in the characters that indulge the audience to ponder human psychology, leadership rolls, and existentialism.
Rating: Summary: Better than you would expect. Review: I will agree with anyone who says there are holes in the plot, but that's why it's a movie and not a documentary. If you are looking for an escape from reality for a short time, have at it. The action sequences are highly entertaining and worth seeing for example sky diving dragon slayers. As far a summer movies go, I enjoyed this movie much more than Men in Black II.
Rating: Summary: Usual Horror Action Formula has Never Been More Boring Review: Reign of Fire is just another bottom of the barrel action movie that shows us nothing we haven't seen before millions of times before. There are a several reasons this movie is worse then your usual bad action movie, one is that there is nothing to cheer for, sure you want the humans to destroy the monsters, but if the whole world has already been destroyed and there are only a few hundred humans left in existence they can't rebuild the whole world, hehnce there is know point. The other is the action is boring, it's the same thing done over about 4 times in a row, dragon attacks and 4 or 5 nameless humans get killed trying to kill it, who cares?? Half the characters who die are nobody's to the movie, so who cares if they die? This movie is just another waste of movie, that's why there are movies like Minority Report available at the moment.
Rating: Summary: great dragon... Review: I enjoyed the movie. The special effects were awesome. I think it was a little too technical trying to explain the dragon, and the procreation speed is unbelievable as well as humanity's response as a whole, but the dragons are cool and the efforts shown to defeat them equally impressive. I think the movie could have been longer, and there could have been more character development, but it was certainly worth the matinee price and the movie does benefit from the big screen.
Rating: Summary: Mezmerizing Review: I found Reign of Fire to be an awesome and mezmerizing edge of the seat movie. The acting was great and the combination of action, drama and light humour made it worthwile seeing. I'm tired of the "cops and robbers" as well as victimization of females movies out there. It was refreshing to see a good scifi for a change
Rating: Summary: Surprisingly Engrossing Review: ... For one things, most of the criticism seemed to be along the lines of: 1) the dragons didn't meet their fantasy-genre expectations, or 2) there was not enough on-screen carnage. Since the good reviews seemed to focus on the opposite - that this is a movie about people facing dragons, not a "dragon movie," it sounded worth the risk of a few hours. Surprisingly, for an action movie, this is a movie that made me care about the people involved, and in particular Christian Bale's character. What is left of humanity has its back against the wall, and two leaders with very different styles are presented. One of the things I appreciated is that the movie manages to side-step most action-movie cliches (although I did know one very likeable character was doomed). Choices are made, not always right, and there are no super-heroes, but there is heroism. There was never a moment when I wasn't emotionally involved, even though it remains a popcorn movie. If you go into this determined to pick apart the "what-ifs" or if you truly enjoy on-screen gore, you are going to be disappointed. If you want human drama in a fantasy scenario, then you might well enjoy it.
Rating: Summary: Didn't live up to its potential Review: This was an enjoyable, well written movie with solid acting and special effects. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to its full potential. At an hour and a half (or so), it left me wanting more. I could easily have enjoyed it at twice the length. The major problem I had with the film was the fact that, once they discover the first dragon, the movie leaps forward twenty years. It was that intervening twenty years that I wanted to see more of. It would have been interesting to see all of humanity come together in a common cause of survival (a la Armageddon). It would even have been intriguing to get a glimpes of the political maneuvering that occurred, as well. Unfortunately, all we get of these intervening years is an interior monologue from Christian Bale's character as he writes in his journal. In addition, the ending, to me, seemed a bit abrupt. I was expecting some sort of brief summary of the events that took place after the movie involving humanity's continued struggle against the beasts.Despite these shortcomings, the movie was enjoyable in and of itself. Well written dialogue and intriguing characters held my attention during the lulls in between the action scenes. Bale and McConaughey stood out among the cast in both their acting and in the definition of the characters themselves. The post apocalyptic scenario was handled well and was believable. The struggle to feed survivors and the worry that other enclaves were gone and the fear of marauders gave a feel of authenticity. The costumes and sets were well done and added vividly to the vision of the creators. Finally, I have to say that these are some of the best looking dragons on film. I was highly disappointed in Dragonheart's design...a little to cheesy for me. These, though, were menacing and frightening. I just wish we'd gotten to see more (again, the hour and a half playing time comes into play here...there wasn't enough time to develop characters and story as well as mix in more action than there already was...oh well). If you're a fantasy fan, then I would recommend you see this in the theaters, just for the chance to view the creatures on the big screen. Otherwise, you may just want to wait for it to be released on DVD.
Rating: Summary: Another missed opportunity! Review: Throw this one in the same category as PLANET OF THE APES, THE SCORPION KING, GODZILLA, DUNGEONs & DRAGONS and on and on. What category is this? Why, it's the 'blown opportunity' category! True, Mr. McConaghey and Mr. Bale try hard to overcome the script that they've been given, but in the end they fail. Another one who must ultimately succumb to the dreary material is Rob Bowman, who handled the X-FILES big screen outing to admirable effect. Overall? You can wait for the video.
Rating: Summary: "England, We Have A Problem ..." Review: There is an entire flock of summer movies that get released every June/July/August with high hopes for capturing the hearts, minds, and imaginations of viewers everywhere. Some of these films are destined for the trash heap; some of them end up being rushing to the video and DVD market; while some of them are loosely penned with the hopes of a destiny to become a major motion picture franchise. REIGN OF FIRE succeeds as little more than a modest budget popcorn extravaganza; while the ending does leave hope for a follow-up should the box office warrant it, I personally cast my vote for dragons to be left extinct. From the film's beginning, Quinn (later played, as an adult, by Christian Bale) is linked to the rebirth of the dragons, whom the audience is told in a relatively long and cumbersome narrative are responsible for wiping out the dinosaurs. They've stayed dormant for hundreds of years, waiting for the chance to rise again and feast on a new munchie ... mankind. Hoping to survive the ensuing cataclysm, Quinn and company hightail it to the English outskirts, living in a commune responsible primarily for taking care of the children in hopes that a subsequent generation will find the answers for mankind's future. Into their midsts comes Van Zan (played with cigar-chomping aplomb by a beefed-up Matthew McConaughey), a gung-ho American soldier bent on destroying dragons everywhere. Van Zan and Quinn's ways clash, but pretty soon they find themselves on the same page, heading into a destroyed London to wipe out the dragon male, seemingly the source of all other dragons (don't ask). I've always enjoyed post-apocalyptic movie fare. From the MAD MAX series to the indie HARDWARE to even WATERWORLD, there's something to be said for mankind being removed from all of the technology and left with only its most primal instinct -- survival of the fittest. While REIGN does explore a simple narrative, the film feels much like something we've seen before. Perhaps the film's finest moment is all too short: Quinn and a fellow re-enact an unforgettable lightsaber duel with painted broomsticks while the wide-eyed urchins of tomorrow sit on and watch with wonderment and awe. In many respects, I found the special effects, particularly those surrounding the dragons in flight, to appear almost cartoonish in nature and low quality. While I don't want to spoil the climax for those viewers who are holding out for a future screening, I will divulge that Van Zan meets a demise befitting the limited character traits (think token military characters made famous by Lee Van Cleef or even stock vengeful types made infamous by Charles Bronson) he's provided. It's all done by-the-book here, and, sadly, not very interesting. What could've been JURASSIC PARK BY AIR instead becomes CARNOSAUR ON ASH, two steps up from a disappointment but one step shy of any true resonance.
Rating: Summary: BEAUTIFUL DRAGONS Review: I have always been a big fan of dragons, and this movie helped---alot! The story opens up with a young boy named Quinn going to visit his mother in a tunnel. The scene ends with his mother , along with 2 other workers, getting killed by a dragon. The movie moves to the future where Quinn leads a rag tag group of English survivors; survivors of the battles with humans versus the dragons. Apparently the dragons have overtaken the world. Enters Matthew McConaughy aka Van Zandt. A United States Marine who has become notorious for hunting and killing the dragons. The animation of the dragons was top notch. Granted the action/dragon scenes were not enough but they did wet my appetite. Matthew M. was fantastic as the Marine gone slightly insane. He kept true to his character up to the very end. He made a personal battle out of hunting and killing the dragons. Quinn absolutely was the epitomy of the protector. He did not want to involve his people with Van Zandt, when he (Van Zandt) wanted to go to London to kill the male. Basically all the dragons are female and only one male. The men of this "tribe" were telling the story of a struggle between father and son. The story was pulled directly out of the fight scene in STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. That is a scene not worht missing. Over all the plot was weak and pretty much so was the acting. I liked the guy who was Quinn. Fierce and determined but never comprimising his principles. The animation was supurb. The other thing that stuck in my mind was the build on Matthew. He looked good, however the body looked almost fake. I cannot explain it; it just did not look right on him. He should just stick to dramas. Not too many more action movies. This was a great movie for those who enjoy a little action and some great animation.
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