Cloud20

Spider-Man 3 (2006)- 2.5/5.

Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons, Bryce Dallas Howard, Dylan Baker, Bill Nunn, James Cromwell, Bruce Campbell, Cliff Robertson. Directed by Sam Raimi.

Possible spoilers.

Terribly disappointing sequel that had been highly anticipating since the release of the impressive "Spider-Man 2" in 2004. Peter Parker's life is going well in New York City. He's the on top of his classes in College and he is also still in a strong relationship with his high school sweetheart Mary Jane Watson. His former best friend, Harry Osborn, still holds a grudge against Peter about being revealed of who his father's real "murderer" was. Following in his father's footsteps, Harry has now become the New Goblin and will stop at nothing to kill Spider-Man. This time, Spider-Man must also deal with two more villains, one of which coincidentally is responsible for his Uncle's death (Sandman) and the other who is a photographer also working for the Daily Bugle (Venom). The meanest villain of all is one that isn't even human - the black symboite that takes Peter's costume over and leaves him in a change of personality that he must fight. So much expectation from many fans of the series thinking it would be the strongest part of the series like "Return of the King" was for "Lord of the Rings" and "Revenge of the Sith" was for the new Star Wars trilogy. Problems with the storyline and characters are really what makes the film go down. Everything seems so rushed and sloppy compared to the first two films. Maguire's performance is less than impressive, as all he seems to do on the screen is either to act like a jerk or cry over Mary Jane. James Franco is really the only performance I actually enjoyed, but even he can't make up for all of the other performers. Sam Raimi must really have a tough time thinking of new ideas for the film because we still have the same sub-story lines regarding Uncle Ben's death or Peter and Mary Jane's on-and-off relationship. The second film was fresh because there was a completely different villain and Peter's personality was very understanding for him not wanting to be Spider-Man in order to live an every day life. Here, watching Peter is about as likable as hanging out with Rush Limbaugh for a day. The "dancing" scenes are especially stupid, and his "new look" is just painful to look at. That being said, the special effects are at least decent and there are a few funny scenes and enjoyable action sequences. Overall, I just think that it could have been a great film had the director put in the effort to develop it. In the end it just looks like he wrapped it up like a teenager working on a high school book report at the last minute.

Forrest Gump (1994)- 5/5

Tom Hanks, Robin Wright Penn, Gary Sinise, Sally Field, Mykelti Williamson, Haley Joel Osment. Directed by Robert Zemeckis.

Possible spoilers.

Fantastic Best Picture winner of 1994 that is heartwarming and hilarious, "Forrest Gump" is a perfect example of a film to watch on a bad day. The titled character is just so likable and understanding that I don't know how anyone could give a negative comment about the movie. Many dislike it merely because it won the Oscar over films like "The Shawshank Redemption" and "Pulp Fiction." Don't get me wrong, those two are great films, but there are some qualities in "Forrest Gump" that are simply superior. The main character, played as an adult by Hanks, is... "different." He grows up in the small town of Greenbow, Alabama with his mother (Field) and the love of his life, Jenny Curran (Wright), but manages to leave the town and go to college to play football due to his incredible speed. After college, he enlists in the marine corps and is taken to Vietnam. After enlisting in the war, he returns to America to find Jenny and to see where his life takes him, and it's an amazing journey to say the least. Robert Zemeckis' direction is excellent and probably the best of his long career. Tom Hanks never ceases to amaze me in this; it may very well be one of the best performances in an American film I've ever seen. Wright, Sinise, Williamson and Field all do great in their supporting roles. The editing and cinematography are just perfect. A great blend of both comedy and drama, "Forrest Gump" is a truly unforgettable film that is just about for everyone.

True Romance (1993)- 4.5/5

Possible Spoilers.

One more impressive outing from the writing of Quentin Tarantino and a long list of credible actors. The dialog and performances really make the film entertaining and engaging. The storyline involves movie geek Clarence Worley (Slater) who meets a hooker named Alabama (Arquette) and falls in love with her. Clarence has trouble with her pimp, Drexl (Oldman), but ends up killing him after a fight. Instead of picking up Alabama's belongings at Drexl's apartment, Clarence picks up a briefcase filled with half a million dollars worth of cocaine by accident. The two plan to travel to Los Angeles to sell all of it and move away with the money, but a group of mobsters and the LAPD are both informed on the situation and try to reclaim it. Slater, who I don't particularly care for, does his best here and I was not let down with his performance. Tarantino's script is just great - using far more talk rather than violence to make the movie work. The cameos and supporting cast do very well in their roles, most notably Walken and Pitt. Tony Scott's direction is pretty impressive, as he provides us with a film far superior than the list of mediocre flicks the director has made. Maybe not one of the top films from the year, but definitely enjoyable and the best movie by Tony Scott.

Cast: Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, Dennis Hopper, Michael Rapaport, Gary Oldman, Bronson Pinchot, Brad Pitt, Christopher Walken, Saul Rubinek, Val Kilmer, Chris Penn, Tom Sizemore, James Gandolfini, Samuel L. Jackson.