Quickie Movie Review: "The Hunters"

Rated: PG for action/violence
Starring: Robbie Amell, Alexa Vega, and Michelle Forbes
Released: January 7, 2014

Synopsis: When their parents send out a distress call, it's up to brothers Paxton (Robbie Amell) and Tripp (Keenan Tracy), along with their friend Dylan (Alexa Vega, Spy Kids), to save them.  Dylan knows something the guys don't, though: Their parents are part of an ancient society called the Hunters, who hunt down magical artifacts to keep them from getting into the wrong hands.  With villains who will stop at nothing to thwart their plans, Paxton, Tripp, and Dylan are in for the rides of their lives.  Will they be able to save their parents...and the world?

My Review: This movie feels like a video game or an old-school serial: big on action, and with plenty of fantasy elements mixed in.  You could almost say it's a throwback, in a way.  Though I enjoyed the movie for the most part, I thought there still could have been a bit more action, and that one of the final scenes could have been improved.  The ending leaves room for a sequel; is one already on the way? Despite its issues, though, it was still a fun romp; one that I would never have discovered if a friend hadn't recommended it to me.

Content Concerns:

• Sex: Kissing. 4/5
• Nudity: Cleavage; shirtless guys. 4/5
• Language: None that I heard. 5/5
• Violence: Quite a few scenes involve kicking, punching, and the shooting of crossbows; nothing bloody or graphic, though at least one person dies. 3/5
• Drugs: People drink alcohol at a party. 4/5
• Frightening/Intense Scenes: Along with what was mentioned under "Violence," a man is seen turning into stone and crumbling, and some sequences are dark and eerie. 3/5
• Other: A bit of product placement. 4/5

Score: 4/5

TV DVD Review: "Mork & Mindy": Season One

Rated: TV-G (US) / G (Canada)
Starring: Robin Williams, Pam Dawber, Conrad Janis, and Elizabeth Kerr
Released: 1978 - 1979 (original TV premieres) / September 7, 2004 (DVD)

Synopsis: Sent from the planet Ork to learn about the customs and culture of our planet, Mork (the late Robin Williams, in his star-making role) crash-landed into Boulder, CO, just in time to inadvertently save college-aged Mindy McConnell (Pam Dawber) from a date gone horribly wrong.  With nowhere else for him to go, Mindy invites him to stay at her place, much to the chagrin of her father, Fred (Conrad Janis).  Mork quickly makes friends with young kid Eugene (Jeffrey Jacquet) and insane nut Exidor (the late Robert Donner), but completely fumbles when it comes to the ways of our planet.  Whether he is falling in love with a lady who is a real doll, learning the truth about lying, or using his alien powers to defend Mindy from a womanizing jerk, hilarity is sure to ensue!
Features guest appearances from Henry Winkler (Happy Days), Penny Marshall (Laverne & Shirley), and screen legends Morgan Fairchild and David Letterman.

The Good: Mork & Mindy is one of my longtime favorite shows, so, of course I would enjoy this first season.  I hadn't watched much of it in a while, but, when I heard that the final season was being released on DVD, I knew I had to catch up.  Since most of the cast has passed away, being able to see them in action is a real treat, especially since this set features the episodes as they were originally broadcast.  Robin Williams is definitely the star here, and his antics are hilarious; however, the rest of the cast does well, too, especially Robert Donner as Exidor, who is even loonier than Mork himself.  By now, I would think most everyone would be familiar with this show; if you're not, but you're a fan of old-school television, you should definitely check this out from your local library.  Give it a chance and see if you don't laugh.

The Bad: As good as this is, I do have some minor complaints.  Though the packaging is nice, the discs themselves are void of any special features, save for the cute menu screens.  Non-English speakers may be disappointed to find that there aren't any foreign subtitles; I've heard this show was popular in non-anglophone countries, so, you'd think they'd at least include at least a Spanish language option.  Also, the last episode ends the set with a whimper; it's rather boring, especially for a season finale.

Content Concerns:

• Sex: Mork naively refers to sex in a childlike way here and there.  People believe Mork and Mindy are "shacking up,"; though they never do anything immoral, the stigma of a man and woman living together without marriage is still there. 3/5
• Nudity: Cleavage, and Mork often wears an outfit that shows a bit of his chest. 4/5
• Language: Profanity is quite rare, but many characters call each other names, including Mork teasing Orson--who is never seen--about being overweight. 4/5
• Violence: Comedic pratfalls are the rule here.  Mork does get into a fight with someone, but it isn't the least bit bloody or graphic. 4/5
• Drugs: People are seen drinking alcohol fairly often; smoking is referenced once or twice. 3/5
• Frightening/Intense Scenes: One episode features Mork nearly dying.  In other episodes, he suffers from some emotional intensity. 3/5
• Other: Mork makes occasional disparaging remarks about conservatives and religion. 4/5

Conclusion: This review is probably biased, but I really enjoyed revisiting one of my old favorites.  Now, I can't wait to watch the remaining seasons! Look for reviews to come in the future! Seriously, if you've never seen this show...you're missing out!

Score: 4.5/5

Movie Review: "Moms' Night Out"

Rated: PG for mild thematic elements and some action
Starring: Sarah Drew, Sean Astin, and Patricia Heaton
Released: May 9, 2014

Synopsis: Allyson (Sarah Drew, Grey's Anatomy) is beyond stressed out.  With a house full of rambunctious kids and a husband (Sean Astin, The Lord of the Rings) constantly traveling for business, she definitely needs a break.  Together with her best friends--fellow young mother Izzy (Andrea Logan White, Revelation Road) and preacher's wife Sondra (Patricia Heaton, Everybody Loves Raymond)--they plan a moms' night out, and leave their husbands to look after their kids.  What started out as a fun night quickly turns into disaster...for both the moms and the dads! Between an escaped pet bird, a search for a baby that inadvertently leads the moms to a tattoo parlor, the moms landing in prison, and a car chase involving the police, a British cabbie, and a motorcycle dude, hilarity is sure to ensue!
Also starring Alex Kendrick (Facing the Giants), Robert Amaya (Courageous), Sammi Hanratty (The Lost Medallion), and country music star Trace Adkins.

The Good: This is a hilarious madcap adventure in the vein of old-school family comedies such as Home Alone or Jingle All the Way, but without the problematic content.  Many moments were so insane, I literally laughed out loud.  Though this may be a Christian movie, it's unlike any other I've ever seen...and I've seen a lot of them! As for the talent, Sarah Drew is a definite standout as the lead.  Seriously, she plays the character so well, it's hard not to enjoy her presence onscreen.  The other talent does very well, also.  It was also great to see a ethnically diverse cast; one of the moms is married to a Hispanic man, and an older African-American couple ends up saving the day.  (To say how would give away the movie's plot.)  In typical family movie fashion, lessons are learned by the movie's end.  Not much to complain about, except...

The Bad: A post-credits scene makes an allusion to sex.  Also, some of the moms act in rather rude ways, like texting among each other when someone is talking.  (Yes, the person in question may have been droning on, but that's still rude!)  Not only that, but...the hilarity abruptly ends when the movie takes a serious--though not tragic--turn.

Content Concerns:

Sex: A brief allusion to sex at the end; it is mentioned that an unmarried woman has a biological child. A pregnancy test is shown. 4/5
Nudity: Slight cleavage; a shirtless guy. 4/5
Language: Kids are referred to as "hellions"; a woman is called a "tramp". 4/5
Violence: Various comedic pratfalls.  A guy gets injured, and heals himself by slamming his arm against a hard surface; a guy gets hit by a car and is knocked unconscious; an insane car chase; a guy sits on a pet bird, etc. 2/5
Drugs: A guy appears to be affected by drugs or alcohol; alcohol is referenced and seen once or twice. 4/5
Frightening/Intense Scenes: Some emotional intensity. 4/5
Other: The moms sometimes act in rude ways, despite being Christians. 4/5

Conclusion: What a crazy ride! This movie is unlike not only any Christian movie I've ever seen, but unlike any movie I've seen in a while! Then again, I've mostly been watching action/adventure or sci-fi/fantasy flicks instead of comedies.  Problems aside, this made for a fun flick, and would be great for a social outing...such as a Moms' Night Out!

Score: 4/5

Movie Review: "The Identical"

Rated: PG for thematic material and smoking
Starring: Blake Rayne, Ashley Judd, and Seth Green
Released: September 5, 2014 (theaters) / January 13, 2015 (DVD)

Synopsis: During the Great Depression, the Hemsleys welcome twin boys...only to realize that, since money is tight, they can only support one.  They decide to let a preacher (Ray Liotta) and his wife (Ashley Judd) adopt Ryan, while Drexel remains with his parents.  As the years go by, the twins (both played by Blake Rayne) are living very different lives.  Drexel is raking in the millions as a performer, while Ryan struggles to find his calling, especially since his minister father wants him to follow in his footsteps.  Ryan eventually gets a gig as a Drexel impersonator known as "The Identical," but has no idea of their true connection.  Will they find each other before it's too late?

The Good: For a Christian movie, the production values are great.  It helps that this film has some mainstream talent; not only is Ashley Judd one of the main actresses, but the end credits even mentioned that veteran voice actress Tara Strong (Ben 10) had a cameo.  The performances were great, and even the closing credits started off with a wonderful song.  Even the sets did an amazing job of taking you back in time.  Unfortunately...

The Bad: All that is ruined by the poor story.  Maybe I'm being too critical, but, for me to enjoy a film, it has to have a great narrative, even if it's a tried-and-true formula.  This movie just goes on for too long, and doesn't really reach a pleasing conclusion.  By the time it was over, I didn't really care about the characters that much; in fact, I struggled to finish it.

Content Concerns:

• Sex: Kissing. 4/5
• Nudity: Occasional bare midriffs and cleavage. 4/5
• Language: One h-word, and one misuse of God's name. 4/5
• Violence: A young man is knocked down by a police officer.  Someone dies as a result of a plane crash (not shown). 4/5
• Drugs: Alcohol is consumed fairly often; smoking is also present, though less so. 3/5
• Frightening/Intense Scenes: Emotional intensity abounds.  An elderly man is shown having a heart attack. (Spoiler: He recovers.) 2/5

Conclusion: What a disappointment! I was rather excited to purchase this using my K-Mart reward points, but it turned out to be a serious dud! Elvis fanatics may feel differently, but, I really did not enjoy this one.  It's a shame, because, with such great talent and wonderful production values, this could have been a much better movie.

Score: 2/5

TV DVD Review: "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" (1987): Volume Two

Rated: "For Ages 5 And Up" (manufacturer's advisory)
Starring: Cam Clarke, Townsend Coleman, and Renae Jacobs
Released: October - December 1988 (TV premieres) / April 26, 2005 (DVD)

Synopsis: The heroes in a half-shell are back in action in this second season of their old-school Saturday morning cartoon! The evil Shredder will stop at nothing to wreak havoc in New York City, and it's up to Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael, along with their allies--rodent sensei Splinter and local TV reporter April O'Neill--to stop him! In this DVD set, Shredder discovers powerful alien technology, Splinter becomes human again, and April's DNA gets transmutated with a cat's! Will the Turtles finally be able to stop Shredder once and for all?

The Good: A DVD set of the 2003 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon was what woke me up to superhero cartoons in general, so, of course, I would enjoy something like this.  I enjoyed the comedy and the action; in fact, the finale kept me on the edge of my seat.  The voice work is very well-done, as was the closed captioning.  The animation had some great moments, but...

The Bad: It could have been a bit better; I even noticed some discoloration in the last episode.  Also, the video quality suffers a bit because the makers put thirteen episodes on one disc.  Still, those are about the only complaints I have.

Content Concerns:

• Sex: Innocent romance (i.e., flirting).  One of the Turtles dresses up as a woman in order to thwart an enemy. 4/5
• Nudity: Cleavage; a guy in nothing but underwear. 4/5
• Language: No actual profanity, though there was name-calling (e.g., "moron" or "fool") and occasional usage of euphemisms ("gosh," "let's haul shell!") 4/5
• Violence: Action violence abounds in every episode.  The Turtles, the bad guys, and others hit, kick, punch, throw, etc. each other quite frequently.  Most of the fights are non-fatal, though the finale ends with the presumed death of at least one character.  There are also some comedic pratfalls. 2/5
• Drugs: Substances cause transformations. 4/5
• Frightening/Intense Scenes: Some of the enemies can be a bit scary.  The events of the finale put Splinter's life in danger.  (Spoiler: He makes it out just in time.) 4/5
• Other: A bit of gross-out humor (for example, burping). 4/5

Conclusion: Despite its flaws, I thoroughly enjoyed this second volume of the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon.  After the events of the finale, I can't wait to see where the story goes from here.  It may not be perfect, but, it harkens back to a time when entertainment was about more than just lush visuals.  If you were disappointed with last year's TMNT movie, check this out to see the Turtles as they were intended to be.

Score: 4/5

TV Episode Set Review: "My Babysitter's a Vampire": Season One

Rated: TV-PG for violence
Starring: Vanessa Morgan, Matthew Knight, and Atticus Mitchell
Released: June - July 2011 (TV premieres)

Synopsis: After the events of the prequel telefilm, Sarah (Vanessa Morgan, Harriet the Spy: Blog Wars) is now a fledgling vampire.  Benny (Atticus Mitchell) and Ethan (Matthew Knight) are still geeks...but, the three of them, along with the entire town of Whitechapel, find themselves in one supernatural predicament after another.  From a spell that inadvertently brings legions back to life, to a zombie plague that takes over all of the teachers at their high school, to a life-sized, talking version of Ethan's little sister's doll, these kids are in for the ride of their lives.
As seen on Disney Channel.

The Good: Though this wasn't actually made by Disney Channel, it has most of the makings of their live-action productions, which is a good thing.  Ethan, Benny, and Sarah show amazing resourcefulness and problem-solving skills in pretty much every episode.  There are also some very cute and funny moments, and a lack of profanity and explicit sexual content is good.  Even the violence is non-graphic...

The Bad: ...but it does get rather intense at times.  Even when it isn't violent, the mood is mostly dark and scary.  It's almost like the direct-to-video Scooby-Doo films that were released around Y2K; instead of being someone in a suit, these ghouls and goblins are real.  Some of the themes border on occultic, especially the episode where a board game causes Sarah to be possessed.

Content Concerns:

• Sex: Kissing and flirting. 4/5
• Nudity: Cleavage; girls/women in short shorts and off-the-shoulder tops. 4/5
• Language: Name-calling. 4/5
• Violence: As mentioned above, the violence can be pretty intense at times.  Punches and kicks are thrown; people are bitten by vampires; vampires and other creatures are disintegrated by holy water, being impaled with stakes, etc.; blood is often seen, but not in a violent way. 2/5
• Drugs: A substance transforms people into zombies. 4/5
• Frightening/Intense Scenes: Also as mentioned above, the mood of this series is largely dark and scary, and many moments can be rather frightening.  This definitely isn't for younger kids. 2/5
• Other: A bit of bathroom/gross-out humor (i.e., a ghost vomiting green goo on two kids). 4/5

Conclusion: I don't normally do vampire stories, but, as this was shown on the Disney Channel, I felt I had to give it a shot.  It was better than I expected...but, I don't think I'll be bothering with the second season.  Fans of series such as Twilight may enjoy it; I did, to a degree...but, one season was enough for me.

Score: 3.5/5

Quickie Movie Review: "A Walk in My Shoes"

Rated: TV-G
Starring: Nancy Travis, Yara Martinez, and Cameron Deane Stewart
Released: December 3, 2010 (NBC premiere)

Synopsis: Life has been tough for Justin Kremer (Cameron Deane Stewart) and his family.  Between his father getting killed in Iraq, his mother's financial woes, and the normal stresses of high school, times have been tough.  In order to play on his school's basketball team, Justin has to have a decent GPA...but, he hasn't turned in his English paper yet, and his teacher, Mrs. Fahey (Nancy Travis) isn't taking any excuses.  After a slight fender-bender, Mrs. Fahey meets Molly (Yara Martinez), an angel who gives her a mysterious challenge.  Next thing Mrs. Fahey knows, she finds herself in the place Justin's mom, and discovers all of the struggles he and his family are going through.  Will they make it through this difficult time?
Part of the Family Movie Night venture from Wal-Mart and Proctor & Gamble.

My Review: We've seen the body switch/place switch thing done on film countless times; Disney has made three different Freaky Friday movies alone, plus ones that are along similar lines, such as Wish Upon a Star, where two sisters switch bodies.  A Walk in My Shoes doesn't break any ground on that front, and really isn't anything special, but it makes for some decent entertainment nonetheless.  If you're a fan of family movies, this is right up your alley.

Content Concerns:

Sex: Kissing. 4/5
Nudity: Cleavage. 4/5
Language: None. 5/5
Violence: A non-fatal car accident; a bit of mild fighting. 4/5
Drugs: None. 5/5
Frightening/Intense Scenes: A scene intended to evoke the atmosphere of Middle East warfare; some emotional intensity. 3/5
Other: A somewhat irreverent portrayal of an angel. 4/5

Score: 3.5/5