Monday, September 8, 2008

Mad Money


Bridget Cardigan (Diane Keaton) is shocked to learn that she is on the verge of losing her home and comfortable upper middle class lifestyle when her husband Don (Ted Danson) is downsized from his job of 30 years. Don has been looking for a job for a whole year with no luck. Armed only with a decades old English Lit degree and years as a dedicated mother and corporate wife, Bridget is forced into the unfamiliar labor market with no job skills. Finally, she takes the only position she can find as a janitor at the Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City.

The one-time suburban mom soon discovers she has more in common with her new co-workers than she thought. Bridget forges an unexpected bond with Nina (Queen Latifah), a hard-working single mom with two kids to raise who shreds old money all day, and Jackie (Katie Holmes), an exuberant free spirit with nothing to lose who moves the old money cart. Every day the bank shreds over a million dollars. Caught up in a system that underestimates their talents and keeps their dreams just out of reach, Bridget, Nina and Jackie set out to even the score.

After a lifetime of playing by the rules, the three join forces and devise a plan to smuggle soon-to-be destroyed currency out of the supposedly airtight Federal Reserve. As the unlikely crime syndicate amasses piles of cash, it looks like they have pulled off the perfect crime until a minor misstep alerts the authorities. With more money than they know what to do with, the women are pushed to the limits of their ingenuity to stay one step ahead of the law!
Mad Money

X-Men: The Last Stand


X-Men: The Last Stand is a 2006 superhero film and the third in the X-Men series. It is directed by Brett Ratner, who took over when Bryan Singer dropped out to direct Superman Returns. The movie revolves around a "mutant cure" that causes serious repercussions among mutants and humans, and on the mysterious resurrection of Jean Grey, who appeared to have died in X2. The film is loosely based on two X-Men comic book story arcs: writer Chris Claremont's and artist John Byrne's "Dark Phoenix Saga" in The Uncanny X-Men and writer Joss Whedon's and artist John Cassaday's six-issue "Gifted" arc in Astonishing X-Men.

The film was released May 26, 2006 in the United States and Canada. Despite mixed reviews from critics and fans, the film did well at the box office. Its opening-day gross of $45.5 million is the fourth-highest on record while its opening weekend gross of $103 million is the fifth highest ever.

A pharmaceutical company called Worthington Labs announces that it has developed an inoculation to permanently suppress the X-gene that gives mutants their powers, offering the so-called "cure" to any mutant who wants it. While some mutants are interested in the cure, including the X-Men's Rogue, many others are horrified by the announcement. In response to the news, the X-Men's adversary Magneto raises an army, warning his followers that the cure will be forcefully used to exterminate the mutant race.

Cyclops, still heartbroken about the loss of Jean Grey, returns to Alkali Lake, where Jean sacrificed herself to save the X-Men. Jean appears to Cyclops, and as the two kiss, Jean changes and appears to kill Cyclops. Sensing trouble, Professor Charles Xavier sends Wolverine and Storm to investigate. When they arrive, the two X-Men encounter telekinetically floating rocks, Cyclops' glasses, and an unconscious Jean. Meanwhile Magneto ambushes a military transport and frees Juggernaut, Mystique and Multiple Man, during which Mystique blocks a shot of the mutant cure aimed at Magneto, only to be left behind because she is not "one of them" anymore.

Xavier explains that the majority of Jean's power is seated in her unconscious mind and that, as a result, her powers are largely fueled by instinct, and not under her complete control. In fact, when Jean was a little girl she was so powerful that he had to put telepathic blocks on her mind to help keep her powers under control. Her bottled up powers manifested themselves as an id-like alternate personality called the "Phoenix" — a purely instinctual creature, ruled only by its own violent desires. Wolverine is disgusted to learn that Xavier has kept Jean in check telepathically, but when Jean awakens, he realizes she is not the Jean Grey he knew. Wolverine asks about Cyclops, but she cannot remember and fears she killed him. Jean pleads with Wolverine to kill her before she harms anybody else, but when he refuses, the Phoenix surfaces and telekinetically slams Wolverine into a wall. She then flees to her childhood home. Magneto, also aware that Jean's powers are loose, meets Xavier at Jean's house. The two men plead for Jean's loyalty until the Phoenix resurfaces, unleashing her devastating power. Furious at being caged within Jean's subconscious for twenty years, she destroys her family's house and engages in a psychic battle with Xavier. She eventually overpowers and disintegrates Xavier then leaves with Magneto, temporarily weakened.
Jean Grey unleashes her power
Jean Grey unleashes her power

Following the losses of Xavier and Cyclops, Rogue decides to take the mutant cure. The X-Men regroup and confront Magneto's army, which is attacking the pharmaceutical company's laboratory on Alcatraz Island. The battle begins when Magneto moves the Golden Gate Bridge to land at Alcatraz Island, which is being guarded only by a company of soldiers. The Brotherhood's first charge is ineffective as Magneto is unable to destroy the soldiers' plastic weapons. The first group of mutants, which Magneto refers to as "pawns", are hit with the cure cartridges and depowered. Arclight destroys the weapons with her shockwave, as the X-Men arrive. During the battle, Kitty Pryde leaves to save Leech and at the end of the battle, Beast injects Magneto with the cure, nullifying his mutant powers. After this, Wolverine nearly coaxes Jean back to sanity. However, soldiers arrive and fire upon Jean. The Phoenix quickly emerges and begins to disintegrate everything and everyone around her, vaporizing the soldiers. While the other X-Men flee to safety, Wolverine fights his way to Jean, relying upon his healing abilities to save him from her destructive power. Momentarily gaining control, Jean begs Wolverine to save her. Telling Jean he loves her, Wolverine reluctantly kills her with his claws.

Despite the X-Men's losses, life goes on. The school will continue, even without Xavier. Rogue returns and tells Iceman she had to take the "cure." The two reconcile and continue their relationship now able to touch each other. Magneto, now an ordinary man, sits at a chessboard and reaches out toward a metal chess piece that trembles slightly — indicating that the cure might not be as permanent as originally thought. Following the closing credits, Dr. Moira MacTaggert checks on a comatose patient who greets her with Xavier's voice, implying that he has transferred his mind into this new body.
X-Men - The Last Stand (Widescreen Edition)X-Men - The Last Stand [Blu-ray]X-Men (Widescreen Edition)X2 - X-Men United (Two-Disc Widescreen Edition)

Sunday, September 7, 2008

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor


The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is a 2008 American adventure film that follows The Mummy and The Mummy Returns. It was released on August 1, 2008 in the US.

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is directed by Rob Cohen and written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. Bob Ducsay, Sean Daniel, Stephen Sommers and James Jacks produced the film.

The emperor, "Emperor Han" in the film, is based on Qin Shi Huang, ruler of the Qin Dynasty, and the first emperor of China, not the first Emperor of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Gaozu of Han.

Han, the ruthless and tyrannical first Emperor of China, known as the Dragon Emperor conquered all his enemies, many of whom were buried under the Great Wall of China, and mastered the five elements, but could not conquer death. He sought the help of a witch, Zi Yuan, who knew where to find the secret of immortality. Han orders his second in command, General Ming, to help her with her research. The Emperor tells Ming that no man is to touch Zi Yuan, as he wants her himself. The two fall in love during their search however and are watched by a spy. After Zi Yuan supposedly casts the immortality spell on Han, he invites her to the balcony where she is given the choice of becoming Han's wife or watching Ming die. Zi Yuan angrily denies Han and watches Ming pulled apart by horses. Han then stabs Zi Yuan. She reveals that she has in fact cursed the Emperor and his army, turning them into the Terracotta Army, and flees. If the Dragon Emperor is released from his curse, he will rise again to enslave mankind and rule the earth.

In 1946, 13 years after the events of The Mummy Returns, explorer Rick O'Connell, his wife Evelyn, and brother-in-law Jonathan are retired but still miss their adventuring days, while their son Alex has become an adventurer. With the financial backing of Roger Wilson, an archaeology professor, Alex locates Han's tomb. He is attacked by a mysterious woman, but brings Han back to Shanghai. Meanwhile, the British government entrusts the O'Connells to take the Eye of Shangri-La back to China as a good faith gesture to the Chinese. They arrive at the Imhotep (aptly named after the villain of the first two films) a night club in Shanghai owned by Jonathan. Alex gives them a tour of the exhibit, where it is revealed that Wilson is in league with a paramilitary group led by General Yang and his Second-in-Command Choi, who see Han as the only one who can bring order to China. Using the Eye, which contains water from Shangri-La, they resurrect Han. Han is still trapped in his clay, terracotta form, the surface of which often chips away to reveal his charred, cursed husk of a body underneath. Han accepts the service of Choi and Yang but kills Wilson. The woman from the excavation site tries to kill Han with a dagger cursed by Zi Yuan, but is unsuccessful.

The woman reveals herself to be Lin, a protector of Han's tomb and Zi Yuan's and Ming's daughter. The O'Connells, Jonathan, and Lin trek through the Himalayas and reach the tower that will reveal the path to Shangri-La when the Eye is placed on top of it. Han and his allies arrive soon. Lin summons a trio of Yeti to assist in the battle, but Han manages to place the Eye atop the tower. Rick is impaled by Han's sword while protecting Alex as he triggers an avalanche, which buys them time to reach Shangri-La first.

There Rick is healed by Zi Yuan. Using the water, she and Lin have become immortal and have guarded the secrets of the Emperor. Han arrives and bathes in the pool, restoring his human form and gaining shape-shifting abilities. He shapeshifts into a three-headed dragon, kidnaps Lin, and flies to raise his Terracotta Army at the excavation site. The O'Connells and Zi Yuan pursue Han, while Jonathan and a pilot Mad Dog Macguire leave to gather reinforcements to stop him.

Han summons his army, which will become invincible after crossing the Great Wall. To buy time, Zi Yuan sacrifices her immortality and that of Lin to revive those buried beneath the Great Wall. Led by Ming, the undead army and the Terracotta army fight. Zi Yuan and Han also fight one-on-one. Zi Yuan sacrifices herself to steal back the cursed dagger. Alex saves Lin who receives the dagger.

Jonathan returns with warplanes to fight back. While Rick and Alex head off to fight Han, Evelyn and Lin fight Yang and Choi. Yang gets caught in one of the rotating wooden cranks. Choi attempts to pull him out and refuses to let go, crushing and killing them both. Rick and Alex find themselves outmatched against the shape-shifting Emperor, and the dagger is broken during the confrontation. Rick goads the Emperor into fighting fair, and manages to plunge the dagger hilt into his heart. Alex in turn stabs him in the back, destroying him.

Back at the Imhotep, Mad Dog is the new owner and the O'Connell's celebrate. But Jonathan goes to Peru with the Eye of Shangri-La, a place he claims has no mummies. Once he arrives, however, mummies are discovered there.
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor [Blu-ray]

Wanted


Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy) is a neurotic accounts manager who works in a small cubical filling out billing reports day in and day out. He allows his boss, his girlfriend, and his best friend to walk all over him. To cope with his life, he takes anti-anxiety pills by the bottle full. Wesley has no desire to change his humdrum life, but one day while getting more pills at the drug store, he meets a beautiful woman, Fox (Angelina Jolie), who changes his life forever. Fox was sent to protect Wesley from the man who had just killed his father. Fox tells Wesley that his father died yesterday on the rooftop of the Metropolitan Building and that he will be next. Wesley is recruited into the "Fraternity," a secret society of assassins that his father was a member. Fox must train Wesley to bring out his special powers that he was born with in order to avenge his fathers death. The Fraternity's leader, Sloan (Morgan Freeman), also teaches Wesley the ways of the group, and Wesley soon becomes an assassin just like his father.

All is not what it seems, and Gibson finds out that corruption, deceit, and betrayal run deep within the Fraternity. In the course of avenging his father's death, soon he becomes a target, and must fight for his life to take down the Fraternity.
Wanted [Theatrical Release]

Spider-Man 3


Spider-Man 3 is a 2007 superhero film written and directed by Sam Raimi, with a screenplay by Ivan Raimi and Alvin Sargent. It is the third film in the Spider-Man film franchise based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. The film stars Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Thomas Haden Church and Topher Grace.

The film begins with Peter Parker basking in his success as Spider-Man, while Mary Jane Watson continues her Broadway career. Harry Osborn still seeks vengeance for his father's death, and an escaped convict, Flint Marko, falls into a particle accelerator and is transformed into a shape-shifting sand manipulator. An alien symbiote crashes to Earth and bonds with Peter, influencing his behavior for the worse. When the symbiote is abandoned, it finds refuge in Eddie Brock, Jr., a rival photographer, causing Peter to face his greatest challenge.

Spider-Man 3 was commercially released in multiple countries on May 1, 2007, and released in the United States in both conventional and IMAX theaters on May 4, 2007 by Columbia Pictures. Although the film received generally mixed reviews from critics, in contrast to the previous two films' highly positive reviews, it stands as the most successful film in the series worldwide, as well as the second highest-grossing superhero film behind The Dark Knight.

synopsis spiderman 3

Months after the events of Spider-Man 2, Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) attends the opening night of Mary-Jane Watsons (Kirsten Dunst) new Broadway show, Manhattan Memories. Also attending is Harry Osborn (James Franco), who recently found out about Peters secret identity and has accused him for murdering his father, Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe), who was also the menacing Green Goblin.

As Peter leaves the show, he sees Harry, and runs up to him. He asks Harry to hear his side of the story, but Harry rejects him and leaves. Once home, Harry is seen stepping out of a gas chamber, his muscles considerably larger and with a look of confidence on his face. Peter goes backstage and catches up with MJ, before the two go to a park. Peter spins them a hammock with his Spider Powers, and the two lay in it, stargazing. As the couple leans in for a kiss, behind them a meteor falls nearby. Unknown to them, a strange, black substance crawls out of the meteor, attaching it to Peters moped as he and MJ leave.

Meanwhile, Flint Marko (Thomas Haden Church), an escaped convict, climbs through his sick daughters bedroom window and watches her sleep with machines attached to help her breathe. After a few minutes, he goes into the kitchen to find some food, but is caught by his wife, Emma. He tries to tell her that he was wrongly accused for the apparent murder of a man, but Emma shouts at him and his daughter opens her door. She hands Marko a small locket with her picture in it, and Marko promises that he will find the money to make her better again somehow, but Emma shouts at him and tells him to get out. He does so.

Peter arrives at his Aunt Mays (Rosemary Harris) apartment and tells her that he is planning to propose to MJ. May tells him that he needs to put her before himself, and he convinces himself that he can do it. May then tells him the story of how Peters Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson) proposed to her. When she is finished, she tells Peter to make the proposal very special to Mary Jane, and hands him her wedding ring as a gift for MJ.

Driving back to his apartment, Peter is whisked off his moped by a masked figure on some sort of hoverboard. The masked figure throws Peter into a wall, and then reveals himself as Harry or, the New Goblin. Peter and Harry fight through the streets of New York, and the end result is Harry getting knocked out in an alleyway. Peter takes him to a hospital and watches as they try and revive Harry.

At the same time, Flint Marko is running from the cops through the marshlands. He climbs a fence, and then falls into a stone pit, landing on a pile of sand at the bottom. The pit is revealed to be a particle accelerator, and Flint is caught in it as it does its particle tests. When the police finally reach the accelerator, Marko is nowhere to be seen amongst the sand he has appeared to deteriorate into the sand.

Peter is told that Harry will be okay, and is led into the ward where Harry lies. Harry has lost his memory, and so he and Peter begin to get along just like the old days. Mary Jane arrives and then she and Peter are asked to leave, and Harry tells the nurse that he would give his life for his two best friends.

The pile of sand in the particle accelerator stirs later that morning, and a humanoid shape rises out of the sand. It is Flint Marko, transformed into the Sandman. He sees a small glitter in the sand, and realises that it is the locket that Penny gave him. He picks it up and then attempts to stand up, willed by his love for his daughter. He regains his human appearance, and starts learning how to walk again.

Back at Peters apartment, Peter is admiring the ring he is planning to give to MJ when she knocks on his door. He lets her in and she enters, flustered. She reads out a rather negative review of her performance in the play from the previous night, and Peter uses his experiences as Spider-Man to try and comfort her, but MJ gets even more upset.

Just when she thinks Peter is about to understand, Peters illegal police band monitor goes off and reports about an out-of-control crane in midtown. Peter gives MJ a sympathetic look and then changes into his costume, swinging off through the city. MJ pauses as she leaves, startled by a small bang, but dismisses it almost instantly. What she doesnt see is the black substance crawling down the back of Peters desk and into the shadows of the closet...

In midtown, across the road from and completely unaware of the out of control crane, Peters lab partner in Science, Gwen Stacy (Bryce Dallas Howard), is having a photo shoot in an office building. A rebar slams through the windows behind her, and then drops down another floor and smashes out the floor supports below. The corner of the building drops, and Gwen slides down to the edge of the building and hangs on with all her might. Just as she falls, Spider-Man swings in and catches her, and sets her down. Spider-Man is approached by Eddie Brock (Topher Grace), Gwen]s alleged boyfriend, who tells Spidey that he is the new photographer of Spider-Man. Spider-Man swings off, annoyed with this new photographer, and then goes to the Daily Bugle to deliver the editor some photos of the crane accident. When he arrives, it turns out that Brock has gotten there first, and J. Jonah Jameson (J.K. Simmons) chooses Brocks photo over Peters.

Brock explains that he would like a staff job, and Jameson tells the two photographers that if either of them wants the staff job then they will have to get a picture of Spider-Man committing a crime. Peter tells Brock that he doesnt have a chance at getting the photo, and Peter goes to Times Square. There, he sees a sign saying Spider-Man to receive Key to the City. Peter then goes to take Harry back to his penthouse apartment and the two hang out there. Peter gives Harry his old basketball, and throws it to him in the living room. It knocks into a vase and knocks the vase off and Harry carelessly catches both the ball and the vase. He marvels at his skill, worrying Peter.

Mary Jane goes to the theatre to go to a practise session for her play, but discovers that after several reviews belittled her performance she had been fired from the show. She leaves the theatre, and is startled when she meets a round of applause but is disheartened as Spider-Man swings by. She storms off, frustrated and upset.

The next day, Peter attends the ceremony being held for Spider-Man. He meets MJ, who doesnt tell him about her being fired from the show. She encourages him, and then he walks off. Harry arrives, and he tells he offers to attend her play that night. She tells him that shes been kicked off, and then wonders to herself why she told Harry rather than Peter.

Gwen Stacy introduces Spider-Man as the person who saved her from certain death, and then Spider-Man swings in, performing small stunts on the stage. He drops down and suspends himself at head level with Gwen Stacy, upside down. He tells her to kiss him, for publicity, and she does so in a kiss reminiscent of the one Peter and MJ shared in the alley.

Suddenly, a cloud of sand flies in, and the ceremony is disrupted. Spider-Man swings off to find out what is going on, and then sees the cloud of dust form a person who breaks into an armoured car. Spidey lands in the car and tries to punch the Sandman, but his arm goes straight through his stomach. Sandman punches Spider-Man out of the vehicle, and Spidey swings back in to try and fight off the Sandman. Sandman runs off as Spider-Man realises that the armoured car is about to crash into a large vehicle, and manages to save the two drivers. He jumps out, with Sandman nowhere in sight.

The following night, Peter goes to a fancy French restaurant and gives the Maitre d the ring for MJ. He sits and waits for Mary Jane, practising his proposal. As she arrives, Gwen Stacy approaches, and Peter introduces her as his lab partner. This infuriates MJ, and Gwen quickly leaves. MJ asks Peter if he wants to push her away, but leaves when he replies. Peter tries to follow her, but gives up and retrieves the ring.

The following morning, he tries to contact Mary Jane, but she deliberately doesnt answer the phone. As he hangs up, the phone rings, and he picks it up. A Detective asks him to go down to the police station, where a cop tells him and his Aunt that they got the facts wrong, that Uncle Ben was murdered by someone else. The cop pulls out the picture of Flint Marko, and Peter instantly recognises him. He storms back home, waiting for any news on Sandman.

MJ arrives while he waits, and tells him she wants to support him through this. He tells her he doesnt need help, and she tries to make him understand that everybody needs help at some point in their lives even someone like Spider-Man. She leaves and Peter continues waiting for the police band to give him some news... and falls asleep.

Silently, the black substance approaches him, and he wakes up hanging upside down in front of a skyscraper window. His Spider-Man suit is now jet black, and has enhanced his powers, making him feel good. He swings around the city and then visits Curtis Connors (Dylan Baker), his science teacher, who agrees to analyse the black substance. Peter goes home and hears, finally, a report about Sandman on the police band. He puts on the black suit and goes to fight Sandman, although his powers are enhanced by the black substance. He ruthlessly drowns Sandman, transforming him into a pile of wet mud.

He goes home and argues with the landlord, Mr. Ditkovich, and then slams his door on him. The landlord retreats back to his room, shocked at Peters sudden outburst. Peter, meanwhile, looks in the mirror and realises that the black suit is altering his personality, and takes it off. He then visits Aunt May, telling her of Markos death. She is shocked, and tells Peter that revenge can take people over, like a poison, and change them.

MJ walks through New York, feeling lonely, and calls up Harry. She visits him, and together they make an omelette, singing and dancing to Chubby Checker singing The Twist. After eating, MJ reads from a play that Harry wrote for her, and then the two kiss. Realising that she actually doesnt feel anything for Harry, she leaves, much to the dismay of the equally lonely Harry. He suddenly remembers Peters alter-ego, and sees his father in the mirror telling him to attack Peters heart.

Mary Jane arrives home, and hears the answering machine go off Peter is leaving a message. As he finishes, she is thrown against the wall by the New Goblin, who was lurking in the shadows. His mask off, he tells MJ to break up with Peter.

Mary Jane calls Peter and asks him to meet her in Central Park, where she dumps him, claiming to be in love with another man. Peter then meets Harry in a diner, where Harry claims that he is the other man. Peter furiously leaves and puts the black suit on, arriving back at Harrys apartment that night. He furiously attacks Harry, knocking him into a glass shelf and then sneering at Harry that his father had never loved him. Harry throws a bomb at Peter, but Peter snags it with a web and throws it back at him. Peter leaves as the bomb goes off.

The next day, Peter struts confidently through the streets, and sees an article about Spider-Man stealing some money from the bank, photo courtesy of Eddie Brock. He recognises the photo as an altered version of one that he took himself years ago. He goes to the Daily Bugle and alerts Jameson to the fraud, who fires Brock from his new position as Daily Bugle staff.

Peter then struts through the streets with an air of confidence, looking at several girls suggestively and clicking his fingers. As a montage, we see Peter on the phone with Dr. Connors, who tells Peter that the black substance a symbiote will amplify the characteristics of its host, aggression in particular. Peter brushes it off and then we see him in the Daily Bugle, in a tight embrace with Betty Brant, Jamesons secretary. Jameson walks in and the two break apart, and Jamesons assistant Robbie picks up some photos of black-suited Spider-Man the Peter had placed on Jamesons desk. Jameson offers Peter thae usual rate, but Peter says that if he wants the pictures, Jameson would have to give him the staff job.

As the last part of the montage, Peter struts into a shop, and walks out wearing a new black jacket and suit, and does a small dance in the middle of the street before finally strutting off.

That evening, some mud falls out of a sewer pipe and into a small pond but the mud reforms, and Sandman crawls out of the water. strung around his hand is the locket, and he takes one look at it and then walks off, determined to live up to his promise.

Peter takes Gwen to a jazz club where MJ is now working, in an effort to make MJ jealous. When MJ gets up to sing, Peter jumps up and starts playing the piano with the band, leaving MJ speechless. He suddenly jumps up and launches into a full dance routine throughout the jazz club, ultimately ending in Gwen realising that he did it all to make MJ jealous. She leaves the jazz club, and Peter attempts to talk to MJ. The bouncer tries to throw Peter out, but Peter starts viciously beating him up, and when MJ tries to step in he turns around and smacks her hard on the jaw, sending her flying to the ground. She asks him who he is, and he accepts that he doesnt know. He leaves, MJ still lying on the floor with a look of shock on her face.

Peter changes into his full black Spider-Man costume and swings up to the top of a church tower, where he jumps down and begins tearing at the costume by the church bell. The bells sound seems to pain the symbiote, and it eventually comes off clean.

At the same time, Eddie Brock is sitting in the church praying for god to kill Peter. He hears the bells ringing and goes to investigate, and is caught as the symbiote drips off Peter and lands on him. The symbiote changes Brock into Venom, a terrifying variation of Spider-Man with huge teeth and claws.

Peter is visited that night by his Aunt May, who tells him that despite everything that he might have done to Mary Jane, he can make things right somehow. He watches as she leaves, feeling comforted.

Venom swings through the streets of Manhattan when he is suddenly stopped by Flint Marko, who mistakes him for Spider-Man. Venom tells Marko that together, they could defeat Spider-Man, and Marko agrees to help Venom defeat Spider-Man. Venom goes and gets a taxicab, then drives up to MJs house and collects her when she flags him down to get to the Jazz Club. He kidnaps her and hangs her high in the taxicab in a web, suspended 80 stories above the ground in an under-construction skyscraper. Peter sees reports of the kidnapping on the news, and then changes into his Spider-Man costume.

He goes to Harrys apartment and asks for help, but Harry rejects him again and turns to show Peter the scar on his face. Peter tries once more, to get Harrys help, but Harry merely growls at him Get out. Peter leaves, and Harry is confronted by the house butler, Bernard, who tells Harry that he cleaned his fathers wound the night he was killed. He tells Harry that the blade that pierced his body came from his glider, and Harry says nothing.

Spider-Man swings into the construction site and lands on the front of the car, and Venom swings in and knocks him through the windshield. He grabs the back of the car and hauls himself up, and Venom knocks him down again. He lands down on the web and then Venom jumps on him. Peter tries to ask Brock to settle the problem some other way, but Venom declines. Peter and Venom topple out of the web and have a midair fight before Peter hits the ground. He is then tripped up as Sandman appears, more than ten times his normal size and growling like a monster. Spider-Man attempts to escape Sandman, but Venom knocks him onto a steel bar and holds him there with his webbing. Sandman pummels him with his gigantic fist while onlookers begin to weep.

Just before Sandman can finish Spider-Man off, Harry flies in and throws a bomb at Sandman, and helps Peter up. The two fight Sandman and Venom, and Harry eventually knocks Sandman down while Peter gets MJ out of the taxi and into a safer area. Venom then attacks Peter, and traps him with his webbing, but Harry flies in and attempts to stab Venom with some blades protruding out the front of his hoverboard. Venom grabs his board and flings him off, knocking several rebars loose and collapsing to the floor. The sound pains the symbiote, and Peter remembers back to the church.

Venom leaps towards Peter with Harrys board, intending to impale Peter, but Harry runs in between Venom and Peter, and gets impaled instead. Venom throws him aside and then leaps towards Peter again, who manages to snap his wrists free and smack Venom around the head with a rebar. Peter circles Venom with the bars, and the sound pains Venom as each one is slammed into the ground. Peter snags Eddie from inside the suit with his webbing and pulls him out, and then throws a bomb from Harrys glider at the symbiote. Eddie rushes towards the symbiote while the bomb flies through the air, and is killed in the resulting explosion.

Sandman approaches Peter and tells him that the killing of Uncle Ben was, in fact, an accident caused by his gun going off. Peter forgives him and Sandman flies off through the buildings while Peter swings down to Harry. He and MJ sit on either side of him, comforting him while he dies. Harry forgives Peter for the death of his father and then dies as the sun rises.

Peter, MJ, Gwen, Aunt May and several others attend Harrys funeral, and then we fade into MJ singing at the jazz club. She stops singing as Peter walks in, and then he steps forwards, his hand outstretched. She takes it and the two embrace, slowly dancing on the spot to the music of the jazz band.

WALL·E


What if mankind had to leave Earth, and somebody forgot to turn the last robot off? After hundreds of lonely years of doing what he was built for, WALL*E (short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) discovers a new purpose in life (besides collecting knick-knacks) when he meets a sleek search robot named EVE. EVE comes to realize that WALL*E has inadvertently stumbled upon the key to the planet's future, and races back to space to report her findings to the humans (who have been eagerly awaiting word that it is safe to return home). Meanwhile, WALL*E chases EVE across the galaxy and sets an adventure into motion. Joining WALL*E on his journey across the universe is a cast of characters including a pet cockroach and a heroic team of malfunctioning misfit robots.

WALL-E (promoted with an interpunct as WALL·E) is a 2008 computer-animated science fiction film produced by Pixar Animation Studios. The film was directed by Andrew Stanton. It follows the story of a robot named WALL-E who is designed to clean up a polluted Earth. He eventually falls in love with another robot named EVE, and follows her into outer space on an adventure.

After directing Finding Nemo, Stanton felt that Pixar achieved believable water physics and was willing to direct a film set in space. Most of the characters do not have actual human voices, but instead communicate with body language and robotic sounds, designed by Ben Burtt, that resemble voices. In addition, it is the first animated feature by Pixar to have segments featuring live action characters.

Walt Disney Pictures released it in the United States and Canada on June 27, 2008. The film grossed $23.1 million on its opening day, and $63 million during its opening weekend in 3,992 theaters, ranking #1 at the box office. This ranks the third highest-grossing opening weekend for a Pixar film as of July 2008. Following Pixar tradition, WALL-E was paired with a short film titled Presto for its theatrical release. It has achieved highly positive reviews with an approval rating of 97% on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

Ghost Son (V)


Release Date: January 15, 2008
Director: Lamberto Bava
Writer: Lamberto Bava
Starring: Coralina Cataldi-Tassoni John Hannah Laura Harring Mosa Kaiser
Studio: Xenon

Despite having the dumbest title this side of I Know Who Killed Me, Lamberto Bava's Ghost Son is a nice, deliberately paced, atmospheric ghost movie, refreshingly light on "typical" Italian horror clichés, such as a stubborn refusal to make any goddamn sense, and characters who are all sans skeletons. In fact, other than Bava's name and the presence of Corlina Cataldi-Tassoni, one might mistake it for an American film. Or an African one.

The film tells the story of Stacey (Laura Harring) and Mark (John Hannah), a new couple living on an African farm. Mark is there for work, and early on in the film, Stacey decides to stay with him rather than return to the States. Sadly, Mark is killed in an automobile accident a few days later. Despite having no reason to be there, Stacey remains on the farm, and soon discovers she is pregnant with Mark’s child. Once the baby is born, things begin to get a bit strange...

The film shares a lot with Mario Bava's (Lamberto’s father) final film Shock, in that it deals with a young child seemingly possessed by the spirit of his dead father. But where Shock had a 10 year old kid, here it's a newborn baby. Trust me, it sounds a lot sillier than it is. Granted, you got to employ some suspension of disbelief, especially in the final act, where the baby begins talking and getting aroused during breast feeding, but since this IS a Bava film, you should have checked logic at the door anyway. At least Stacey isn't saved by a random helicopter crashing through the ceiling.

It’s a slow film, but not cripplingly so. Much like last year’s underrated The Return, the film is meant for patient viewers who don’t need to be constantly jolted by fake scares and random bloodshed, and can be just as entertained by character development and a story that unravels steadily, rather than in large chunks of exposition. The only things that bugged me, besides the sight of John Hannah's pubic region (thanks, movie!), were the occasional jump cuts. Since they were used so infrequently and often in a non-'horror' context, they were quite jarring. At one point, Stacey and her friend are talking in the living room, and then suddenly they are in the bedroom, but it doesn't seem like any part of their conversation is missing. Also there's a needless little "10 years later" epilogue that, other than the nonsensical sight of an elephant running inside an abandoned home, serves no actual narrative or thematic function, as it's simply repeating what we already knew.

But the film more than makes up for it when the baby suddenly projectile vomits all over Harring. I was just about ready to doze at that point (not a slight on the film - it IS slow but I like that. I'm just a borderline narcoleptic), but this moment kept me awake for the rest of the film AND the one after it. Puking babies - nature's caffeine.

I have not heard of an actual domestic release for this one (IMDb just lists "2007", and it's already been released elsewhere), but I hope some of you folks give it a shot if it comes your way (or, more likely, when it comes on DVD). Despite the odd occurrences (and again, Hannah's pubes) it's definitely more accessible than Shock or some of Lamberto's other non giallo/zombie type films (i.e. Macabre). Recommended!