mytragicflaw

The film "Night Watch" is a fun, thrilling example of non-conventional Hollywood film-making. The Russian film is a great entry into the vampire chronicles, even though it's not about vampires. True, there are vampires, witches & shape-shifters, but the story is about the age old theory of good versus evil, the dark against the light. There are no slick CGI battles, that add more style than substance. There are no references to garlic, crosses or holy water. Instead, you have drama, suspense and a bit of humor. You have great acting, great direction & proof that you not need to follow the same premises and tricks that other films do. While there are scenes of CGI and violent, if not brutal fight scenes, we are not pulled away from the main ideas that the director wants us to take in. The story is a bit confusing, but most Russian to English translations are. For example, some of Anton Checkov's short stories, lose personalized meanings when taken from one culture to the other. But this film is a crowning achievement in how movies made outside Los Angeles, can be better than their American counterparts.

This film will not win any Academy awards, or any Golden Globes, but it will be a diversion for about ninety-nine minutes. It's not the cream of the crop, but it still could become a guilty pleasure. You must leave all expectations for a vampire movie at the door, because it does not follow standard convention. It is based on a video game for starters, that means that anything goes. This is about Rayne and her quest for vengeance against her father, a head vampire, played very minimalistic by Ben Kingsley. There is a fair amount of blood and gore, especially in the unrated edition. There is some stilted dialog and some wooden acting. However, most of it comes from Michelle Rodriguez. And, Will Sanderson, is actually good as a lead henchman for Kingsley. It's not the most polished film, or best acted, but it definitely ISN'T the worst film of all time, as some hacks would lead you to believe. Most people want to bash Uwe Boll for his work, but I think he rather stays true to his vision. And besides, he funds his own films, so you can't beat him down for that. Still, there are a lot of people that write harsh reviews, some without even spelling actors names right. Those "reviewers" should realize they can spew all the unintelligent trash they want, but when it comes down to doing nothing or watching Bloodrayne, they'll have it in their DVD player faster than they can spell Kristanna Loken. So, if you like vampires, blood & gore & a sexy Kristanna Loken, you should check out Bloodrayne. It is by far Uwe Boll's best attempt to date, I know that's not saying much, but just give it a chance.

House of the Dead was dead before the ink dried on th last page of the script. It is by far one of the worst films I have ever seen. Now, saying that, I gave the film a three. Uwe Boll may not be a great director, but he doesn't bend in his artist integrity. He makes films like he wants, so there could be so many negative comments about this film, and it wouldn't matter. Boll is a good figure to look at if you are an aspiring filmmaker. This film can be used as a example in low budget film-making. How to or how not to do is up to you. All other things aside, this is a horrible attempt at a zombie flick, and the fact that it is based on a video game, doesn't help it either. Johnathan Cherry and Jurgen Prochnow are the only "actors" here, as the rest of the cast should have been buried with this film in a movie vault far, far away. There are low camera angles that reveal how bad the special effects are. There is one cool effect, but a few good things, can't save this loser. Watch Romero's stuff, and leave this trash alone.