Review: Joy Ride

Joy Ride (2001)

Ten years ago Joy Ride hit cinema screens across the globe with the idea of an aggrieved truck driver that was in search of love. What sounds like an innocent romantic comedy in the way I described it, is actually an action orientated horror film that spawned direct-to-DVD sequel (that to my understanding was poor) Joy Ride 2: Dead Ahead. For whatever faults a seemingly misguided sequel bemoaned upon the original’s name, is Joy Ride actually a decent horror movie, or is it overrated and frankly disappointing?

As I said, Joy Ride revolves around a truck driver looking for love over a highway radio communiqué. That is however, a misleading description of when the truck driver finds out he was the victim of a prank, courtesy of the film’s protagonists, Lewis and his ex-con brother Fuller, and the pursues them with no end in sight, to stake his personal vengeance. There’s also a brief flutter of romance thrown into the mix, with Lewis’s childhood friend Venna being the objective of Lewis’s cross country road trip in the first place, which develops into the briefest of love triangles.

The film’s antagonist, Rusty Nail, is a no nonsense killer, and comparable in his sadism to Leatherface from ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ or the antagonist from ‘The Collector’. The only objective of this man is to humiliate his victims and possibly kill them in the process. Whereas in other horror films, the enemy tries to sadistically kill, there are some more ‘unconventional’ methods of vengeance depicted by Rusty Nail in Joy Ride. One of these notable methods involves an almost ‘Truth or Dare’ scenario as the protagonists have to enter a fast food chain with no clothes on.

One of the best things Joy Ride has going for it, is its originality. Although many have compared the film to Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Duel’, it’s something that hasn’t been seen in cinemas for a long time, and audiences will appreciate something that they perhaps haven’t seen before. It certainly isn’t comparable to Inception on the originality scale, but for a horror film it is particularly innovative. One complaint I do have though is the use of horror cliché in certain segments. I mean, a chase through a corn field, how many times can film makers get away with it?

The film may drag slightly through its midpoint, but by the end things hit an exciting climax which do somewhat make up for the slow pace of the first hour. Doors booby trapped with shotguns, a Rusty Nail holding a friend hostage, and just about the only bloodshed in the entire film culminate in a fast paced, an wholly satisfying finish to what otherwise would have been mediocre. The fates of the characters intensify towards the finish, with the ominous motel chase scenes reminiscent of the 2007 film ‘Vacancy’.

Conclusively, Joy Ride comes out of the gates with refreshing originality (to a degree), and an antagonist that is well worth hating. The first hour is rather slow, even the ‘action scenes’ or slow up until the corn field chase, but the climax of the film is strong and worth sticking around for. I can recommend a rental for Joy Ride, if you’re looking for a very watered down Texas Chainsaw Massacre, or perhaps even something similar to Vacancy. A fairly typical modern action/horror, Joy Ride is decent enough to watch, but falls short of being remembered.

Score: 6.0

Recommendation: Rent for Action/Horror fans

Review: Hostel

Hostel (2005)

Coming from the creator of Cabin Fever (Eli Roth), Hostel really does look to push the boundaries of acceptable cinema. This 90 minute head trip through Slovakia’s criminal underworld boasts a tagline of gore and violence, with every intent to shock the mainstream audience and please horror fans. Although it will appear tame in comparison to the extreme sadism depicted in several 80’s horror films (i.e. Cannibal Holocaust), it does boast some of the most brutal and finest horror of the 21st Century.

The premise of Hostel follows three backpackers on a trip across Europe in search of a good time. This search leads them to a quiet part of Slovakia, where they find a seemingly utopian hostel of beautiful women. But all is not as it seems, as people start to go missing, and answers are hard to come by. They finally wind up at the mercy of a murder-for-profit business that has no intent of letting them walk free. The acting of odd ball characters, such as a pumped maniac who’s ready to kill his latest investment, and a group of children that demand bubblegum from passersby really help to add some spice into Hostel.

Paxton is the main protagonist; a fairly average student that has undeservedly found himself is such a harsh situation. I certainly wanted Paxton to survive the Hostel, so I can say Eli Roth did well is developing a decent main character. Other notable stand outs include Oli, an Icelandic backpacker (who in fact has a daughter), who meets Paxton and his friend in Paris and continues with them to Slovakia. Also in the cast is a suspicious Dutch businessman, for whom it is hard to pinpoint his exact intentions. It is difficult to know who to trust in this film, as just about anyone could work for the hostel.

The first forty minutes of Hostel does feel a tad slow. Paxton and his two accomplices seem to just move from one brothel to another, beginning in Amsterdam, and then recruited into the meaty claws of evil in Slovakia. It does serve the characters well however, the fact that they have developed throughout the start of the film, and makes it more heart racing when they encounter trouble, as you actually want them to live. It is however, a much better film once it crosses the halfway point. If the first half of the film is functional yet slow, the second half is a relentless journey through the world of torture and the bloodthirsty.

The actual horror arrives in the innovative way one can be tortured, notably in one scene towards the end, in which a woman’s eye is hanging out of its socket, and something must be done to heal it. Chain sawing through one person’s heels, and then giving him freedom to leave is painful to watch, and that’s one of the tamer scenes. Hostel’s action feels exhilarating and unnerving, as I have said before the main characters seem desperately out of their depth, and a long way from home, truly being the underdogs of the story, and you will most likely want them to live.

Eli Roth has followed up his first creation Cabin Fever, with an equally good (or perhaps better) delivery in Hostel. The third Eli Roth film, Hostel: Part II is just as good as the first instalment, as Roth pushes boundaries of how much gore can be plugged into a modern horror. Hostel is a really exciting, blood drenched horror film, although it can drag a little in its first half, it more than makes up for the in the second forty five minutes. I would recommend Hostel to any fan of horror films, young or old, for its journey through brothels, torture and dam right sadistic violence.

Score: 8.0

Recommendation: Buy if a horror fan.   

Review: The Collector

The Collector (2009)

Coming from the makers of Saw IV, V and VI is The Collector. A film that with no doubt will fit the requirements for the “torture porn” genre, with more gore than you can shake a stick at, does The Collector produce an exciting film on a modest budget?

The Collector tells the story of Arkin, a recently released ex-convict that made some friends and enemies while behind bars. He has until midnight to pay off his daughter’s mother’s debt, and the only solution he can think of is to burgle his boss’s country home. Unaware however, that a far more sadistic enemy has already broken into the house, and has entirely different, much more brutal mission in mind. The antagonist is known (unsurprisingly) as The Collector. His desire is to collect people, in his red and black box, and kill all those who he doesn’t want to collect. A game of cat and mouse ensues, in a house littered with various traps, Arkin must save his boss’s family from this villain.

The characters in The Collector are decent, but none of them are really around for long enough to become likeable. Josh Stewart does a relatively good job of playing the protagonist, Arkin. But ultimately The Collector isn’t really a film you would watch for the acting anyway, as the gore and action scenes take centre stage. However, what is there on the emotional side of things isn’t embarrassing and far from bad, with The Collector himself getting praise as a character for being so brutally evil it’s refreshing.

The meat of the film comes in the gore, and the obvious elements of horror that The Collector prides itself on. The country house is a minefield of hazard, with barely visible wires scattered in high numbers. These wires could be as simple as with the intention to hurt, or they could be a trigger for something much worse, i.e. a chandelier that is covered with downturned knives will be signalled to coming crash down upon the unfortunate victim. Another involves a room that’s entirely covered on the floor with some sort of bear traps. As you can imagine these deadly, well planned concoctions raise the gore level significantly.

The central game of cat and mouse between Arkin and The Collector is very exciting, and the main point of praise for the film. It’s obvious who the audience wants to support, not as in Saw where there’s a whole moral issue, of whether Jigsaw is doing a good thing. The Collector is good back to basics horror, reminiscent of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, one man on a mission for his own sadistic pleasure. It makes a tense film, with the worrying possibility that whatever room Arkin steps in next could easily be his last.

The Collector does very well in creating such a tense and pleasing film for horror fans on quite a small budget. Horror back to basics is what I would call it, and it really does leave the audience satisfied at the end of 90 minutes. There is a very minor twist at the end but this wasn’t a film I intended to watch for story. It may not be clever, complex or an Oscar contender, but it sure is worth renting for any fan of gore related horror films.

Score: 7.5

Recommendation: Rent/Buy if a horror fan

Review: Due Date

Due Date (2010)

Due Date is 2010’s road trip buddy comedy offering starring Robert Downey Jr. and Zach Galifianakis, who also starred in The Hangover. It is also reminiscent of Planes, Trains and Automobiles released 23 years ago. But can Due Date live up to the critical acclaim of that film? Or does it feel cheap, ripped off and not very funny? Read the review to find out.

The plot of Due Date being that Peter (Robert Downey Jr.) has to make it across the US to Los Angeles from Atlanta without money or ID after a misunderstanding at Atlanta Airport caused him to land on the “No Fly List”. However, he does have the option of riding with the eccentric Ethan Tremblay (Zach Galifianakis), which would make the trip somewhat awkward and inevitably annoying. Out of options Peter chooses to ride with Ethan as he has 5 days to get back to LA to see his wife give birth.

Peter Highman, the designated normal character, comes off as quite aggressive and brutal towards Ethan and seems to have a tendency to have ludicrous mood swings. Robert Downey Jr. does a good job here delivering a well acted performance of Peter and managing his emotions well. It is amusing how one minute he’s deliberately driving fast over speed bumps to cause Ethan pain, and the next minute he’s saying “I take every derogatory statement I’ve ever said about you back... I love you”.

However, it is Zach Galifianakis that makes Due Date a funny film. Starring as Ethan Tremblay, an aspiring actor who’s farther has just passed away, this man is eccentric to say the least; he really is bizarre (although that seems per usual for Zach Galifianakis). Galifianakis seems to be getting his foot in the door of the film industry now, starring in The Hangover, Dinner for Schmucks and even managing to save What Happens in Vegas from being a complete train wreck of a film. Galifianakis is as funny as ever here, portraying a lonely, pitiful oddball that has all the funny lines. Carrying his Dad’s ashes around in a coffee jar doesn’t turn out so well when somebody decides to make coffee, giving us one of Due Date’s funniest moments.

What lets Due Date down is its inconsistency. Although the pace increases in the second half of the film, I felt there were almost no laugh out loud moments passed the halfway point. A feel good atmosphere does take over towards the end, and when the duo gets to the hospital, there is one briefly hilarious moment, but ultimately it doesn’t make Due Date a great film. Perhaps if the second half had been as funny as the first I would have recommended a buy.

Some action packed moments such as when Ethan uses a car to tow away a building shine out as examples of how good this film could have been if it had been consistent. The funniest part to this film is actually Ethan’s stupidity, like deliberately eating things you’re allergic to or having a masturbating dog. I would recommend renting Due Date since it has spats of hilarity and the two main characters are quite funny and well acted. It’s probably best you watch this with friends because if you’re in a positive mood while watching Due Date, you will probably think of it much more brightly.

Score: 6.5

Recommendation: Rent

Video Game Review: Red Dead Redmemption

Red Dead Redemption REVIEW

Mmm... Red Dead Redemption. From Rockstar, the creators of Grand Theft Auto, can this game be the western to top Call of Juarez: Bound In Blood? Read the review to find out.

STORY
The story in Red Dead Redemption revolves around John Marston as he travels by train in the game's intro to Armadillo, surrounding him on the train are various 'upper class' folk, that converse very convincingly which really does nail attitudes that were present at the time. As you can see, Red Dead wastes absolutely no time in immersing you into it's wild west world. As you exit the train into the nearest town you travel to Fort Mercer, were you confront Bill Williamson. Completely underpowered your shot, and awake in MacFarlane's Ranch. The rest of the story progresses in standard GTA format working your way up with various contacts as you climb the money ladder and complete various stages of your mission. Your 'mission' is get revenge on the gang that left you for dead, the majority of play dominated by antagonist Bill Williamson and your mission to kill him. The final third of the game feels 'tact on', and the transition between two different locales is so quick you wonder what your left doing. The story also becomes more emotional towards the end and culminates in an epic finale, while all the time being convincing and realistic. Not perfect, but undeniably great. 9.0

GAMEPLAY
Before you lay waste to the gangs that traverse the wild west, you'll learn the basics of horse riding. Actually, the horse riding is very polished, it was also a good idea to include a mechanic that allows you to effortlessly ride along side your friend without having to constantly adjust your speed. The physics of the horse riding also seem proficient and since your horse is available to you at any time it's easily accessible and the best way to travel manually. You can save a lot of time if you take advantage of the virtual 'teleport' system that allows you to just port from one place to another with a basic campfire. When you actually get to the action of the game things aren't quite as pretty, but they're far from bad. A lack of portable, automatic weapons might hurt the fluidity of the game but once you get your hands on one of the more powerful weapons things move much faster. The shooting system is also quite punishing. After being hit by a couple of shots, you'll fall to the floor, then likely you'll be finished off while down. This really can be annoying when trying to accomplish tasks in the open world. Most things can only be manually saved, so if your carelessly shot down by a passing gang, then you may be set back quite away if you haven't saved. Luckily saving is largely accessible thanks to the ability to save the game by setting up a campfire. Overall, the game is blast to play, most of the missions are in short thrills like the GTA series but they come in a wide variety, even if the shooting feels a little 'slow'. 8.5

GRAPHICS AND SOUND
Far from the most important factor but the game really does shine in this department. Things get particularly outstanding when you ride your horse to a mountain peak, and take a look at the fantastic open world from a distance. Every texture is fantastic in detail, every town is full of life and shops have their own personality and every town has it's own charming distinction. This is the sort of thing Mafia 2 didn't do. Make the open world memorable and interesting to look at. The cutscene graphics are nice, if not perfect and the voice acting is fantastic. All the way from the mad characters to the main characters everyone has been polished with detail. One complaint that really does hurt is the amount of glitches. Some include the ground disappearing and mounts sinking into the ground. Fortunately, these are rare patches on something which is otherwise perfection 9.5

REPLAY VALUE
If you've only gotten thirty hours out of the single player you can find your fun in the multiplayer. Rockstar have delivered an experience crammed with options and upgrades. Weapons, Characters, Mounts, Titles and Ranks can all be earned to keep the player chugging out more and more gameplay hours as their Legendary rank increases. Passing into legend, is way of extending your replay value online. It basically concerns you handing over all your weapons and ranks to receive 'Legendary' status, once you achieve rank 50. To be honest those who reach rank 50 have probably run their course with the game, but if your still having fun by all means aim for being a Rank 5 Legend. In single player you can still aim for 100% completion, if you aren't partial to multiplayer. This is no simple task either. While not as monumental as GTA IV, this list of completion is probably more fun to complete and actually manageable this time. It still involves maxing out several ranks and exploring every aspect of the game. As you can see with tons and tons of options after you finish the story, and almost unlimited replayability if you like the online, Rockstar certainly give you mileage for the cost. Even though I'm not a fan of the online, because I find the competitive games too slow, I'm still going to give this game a very high score in this section. 9.5

TROPHIES
Mmm... Lovely trophies. These are infact fantastic in almost all aspects. My only complaint is the grind to Rank 50, because I don't find the online gameplay particularly great. However the story specific trophies aren't too dominant and each trophy represents a new milestone on the road to 100%, with a few miscellaneous trophies with comical names, this is a good list. There's even an extension for those who have the Legends and Killers pack. Personally, I think the DLC wasn't really worthy of trophies, but I don't give a score for trophies so this won't affect the final score.

Score - 9.0

 

Recommendation - Buy 

Video Game Review: Mafia 2

MAFIA 2 REVIEW

Until it's release in August 2010, Mafia 2 had been in the making for 6 years following on from the original Mafia. I never played the original Mafia but my understanding is there is no story related connection between both games. It also rests much of it's credibility on being both story driven and open world, with much of it dedicated to being a third person shooter. So did I like Mafia 2?, read the review to find out.

STORY
The story of Mafia 2 follows Vito Scaletta, who as a young boy emigrated with his family from Sicily to Empire Bay in America. The first chapter takes place at the time of the Second World War, with Vito assigned to Operation 'Husky'. After returning home injured he returns to his family who themselves are having some 'problems', after your poor farther took out a large amount of money before he died from a loan shark and failed to pay it back. Your initial mission is to get your sister and mother out of debt, but you soon become entangled in Empire bay's seedy Mafia underworld. The Clemente, Falcone and Vinci family control the Mafia in Empire Bay, and the story progresses in a struggle of betrayal and back stabbing as you rise through their ranks. The lead Vito Scaletta has been largely criticised for being bland and robotic, but infact his generic persona makes him more relate able as a person. Supporting characters such as Joe are really very convincing playing the role as the confident, but yet accident prone friend of Vito. The lead will also encounter Henry, who has long term experience in the Mafia, this is probably the worst character, because although convincing, as one of the protagonists he isn't very likeable. The 'twist' at the end is a little subtle and rushed with the final cutscene lasting a matter of seconds, but it still really delivers genuine emotion and almost seems perfect for the nature of the game. Overall, the story is the greatest part of the game and one of the best in a video game to date and it's guaranteed to draw most people's attention throughout the game. 9.5

GAMEPLAY
It's a shame that as the most important section, that this is probably the weakest part of the game. Although the driving mechanics are solid and definitely aren't broken, saying they're overused is an understatement. It's not the fact you have to drive all the way back to your home at the end of the mission, it's just the sheer amount of it in the game overall. I'm pretty convinced I spent well over about 30% of the game actually in a car driving. The thing is there's no thrill to driving so having it used so often really is just frankly boring, and felt like filler to lengthen the game. When you get into the action of the game and the shooting sections, the game starts to warm up. The shooting in the first few chapters is mediocre, but once you get your hands on the automatic weapons, things really do spring into life. The shooting feels very familiar but also very polished. It doesn't provide the biggest challenge even on hard difficulty but it remains very satisfying. A stealth mechanic is included but feels almost useless, used only twice in the whole game. In addition to the 'action' elements of gameplay, there's also the 'RPG' elements. You are free to explore the entire open world as soon as your in it. Unfortunately, there isn't much 'exploring' to speak of. Over 100 shops may sound reasonably good, but when there are only seven types of shops it leaves a lot to be desired from the open world. The only real RPG feature I was really impressed with was the 'Body Shop'. Far from original but about as far the game goes with customization, allowing you to repaint, repair and fine tune your car. 7.0

GRAPHICS AND SOUND
There's a lot to be said about the graphical difference between the PS3 and X360 versions of this game. The PS3's lack of lush grass, pools of blood and clothing animation are all disappointing but far from fatal. The game still presents a nice open world which looks like it nails the 1940's and 50's era with authentic (and actually quite funny) radio commentary and music. The biggest problems probably arise from screen tearing and jaggedness that are present, particularly when objects are seen from a long distance. These troubles are counteracted by the excellent CGI cutscenes that make the player evermore see Mafia 2's story as they would see a movie. The voice acting is excellent, with Vito, Henry and Joe all sounding believable. Allow for a few questionable lines from Joe in particular, but for the most part the writing is solid. Overall, the graphics are great. Just don't expect to hop over a fence into one of the areas of the game that didn't receive much 'love', and find lush growing grass. 8.0

REPLAY VALUE
It took me around fourteen hours to complete Mafia 2 on hard difficulty, and your length will really come down to how much time you devote the open world. After completing I cleaned up all the trophies (apart from a few posters) and clocked in around 20 hours of gameplay. Reasonable? Yes, because it delivers such a great experience from the start that even though it lacks replay value, it still holds up pretty well. No multiplayer component or grinding trophies will ensure you don't spent too long with Mafia 2, add with an open world competent that gives little added time also. Most of your extended time will be spent with 'The Betrayal of Jimmy' which arrives as free, day one, DLC, providing you bought the game new and on Playstation 3. Further DLC is promised on 7 September with 'Jimmy's Vendetta', featuring the same arcade gun-play as the first DLC for under $10 (I think). If you don't have time for DLC, then you'll be trading this game in within a week most likely. If your looking for an epic size open world game try Red Dead Redemption or GTA IV, or Fallout 3. For an open world game, Mafia 2 delivers quality over quantity. 6.5

TROPHIES
I won't give a numerical value for Trophies, as they're entirely subjective most of the time. In my opinion, this is a good trophy list which possibly could have been a bit harder. A nice idea, are the mission specific ones that reward you for producing the best possible scenario. A bad idea, is making almost all of them mission specific. Collecting all the Wanted Posters, you will likely leave until last, as it is one of the boring trophies possible, with 159 to collect. In particular one on a roof makes this just about the only trophy causing me problems. Some nice trophy images with a good art style also boost this effort, but releasing DLC trophies on to the actual list before the DLC is out, stopping everyone from 100%, really 2k?, Really?

Score: 8.0

Recommendation: Buy