ONE MISSED CALL

GENRE:  Horror/ Mystery/ Thriller
MADE:  2008
CAST:  Edward Burns, Shannyn Sossamon
DIRECTOR:  Eric Valette
WRITER:  Andrew Klavan, Yasushi Akimoto, Minako Daira

PLOT:  A remake of the Japanese horror film "Chakushin Ari", a group of people connected by telephone numbers in their cell phones begin to die mysteriously after receiving voice-mails that indicate the time, date and detail of their death in the not too distant future.

PARALLEL UNIVERSE:  Ring, The Grudge, 1408, Dark Water

SCORE:

ROMEO + JULIET

GENRE:  Remake/ Drama/ Romance
MADE:  1996
CAST:  Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, John Leguizamo, Pete Postlethwaite, Paul Sorvino
DIRECTOR:  Baz Luhrmann
WRITER:  William Shakespeare, Craig Pearce, Baz Luhrmann

PLOT:  A modern day version of "Romeo And Juliet" with original script.

PARALLEL UNIVERSE:  Shakespeare In Love, Titus, Gladiator

ACTING:

NOTES:  Remember how in high-school they would make you read Shakespeare's "Romeo And Juliet" and you were, quite frankly, a little bored?  Baz Lurhmann's modern day take on this play jazzes things up with gun fights instead of sword fights, he opts to keep the original script word for word but an urban setting with hot young actors and a bangin' soundtrack makes a big difference.

FAMILY GUY, IT'S A TRAP!

GENRE:  Animation, Comedy, Sci-fi, Remake
MADE:  2010

CAST:  Seth MacFarlane, Alex Borstein, Seth Green
DIRECTOR:  Peter Shin
WRITER:  David A. Goodman, Seth MacFarlane

PLOT:  Family Guy's take of Star Wars IV, need I say more.

Click here to watch the trailer.

 

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NOTE:  It's Family Guy, totally hilarious take on Star Wars IV just like "Blue Harvest" and "Something Something Darkside".  If you plan to buying the dvd get the trilogy instead it's totally worth it for the Amazon price, plus blu ray really isn't necessary so don't waste your dollars in getting it.

THE RING

GENRE:  Mystery/Horror
MADE:  2002
CAST:  Naomi Watts
DIRECTOR:  Gore Verbinski
WRITER:  Ehren Kruger, Koji Suzuki, Hiroshi Takahashi

PLOT:  When a group of kids mysteriously die and rumors of a video that ends your life in 7 days after watching it starts to spread, a journalist gets on the case to solve the mystery.  Based on the Japanese film, Ringu.

PARALLEL UNIVERSE:  The Grudge, One Missed Call, Battle Royale

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POSEIDON

GENRE:  Adventure

MADE:  2006

CAST:  Kurt Russell, Emmy Rossum, Richard Dreyfuss, Jacinda Barrett, Josh Lucas

DIRECTOR:  Wolfgang Petersen

WRITER:  Mark Protosevich, Paul Gallico

PLOT:  A group of people try to make their way out of a cruise ship alive after a freak wave has collided with it while asea and has flipped the ship upside down.  A remake of The Poseidon Adventure from 1972.

SCORE:

NOTE:  The truth is that though Poseidon didn't get very high marks I loved the movie.  I watch the original The Poseidon Adventure when I was a young kid and thought the film was pretty awesome- the film had stuck to me since then and so naturally I was very excited when a remake was coming out.  The new film for me, as a fan of the original film, didn't disappoint.  If you've watched the original and liked it you should definitely watch this one as well.

CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY by Tim Burton

GENRE:  Remake/ Family
MADE:  2005
CAST:  Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Freddie Highmore, David Kelly
DIRECTOR:  Tim Burton
WRITER:  Roald Dahl, John August

PLOT:  A young boy from an impoverished but optimistic good-natured family wins a tour of the great chocolate factory in his town.  The film, a remake, follows the young boy's adventurous tour through the factory.

PARALLEL UNIVERSE:  Alice In Wonderland by Tim Burton, Science Of Sleep, Sleepy Hollow

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THE A-TEAM

GENRE:  Action/Comedy
MADE:  2010
CAST:  Liam Neeson, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, Sharlto Copely, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson
DIRECTOR:  Joe Carnahan
WRITER:  Joe Carnahan, Brian Bloom, Skip Woods

PLOT:  In this funny action film four American soldiers (The A-Team) are set up and so take on a mission in order to set things straight.

PARALLEL UNIVERSE:  Smokin Aces, The Boondock Saints, Bad Boys

SCORE:

NOTE:  Like many others I grew up watching the television show.  I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical when I heard that a film was in production.  However, my experience watching the film was a great one!  There were a couple of explanations regarding a few of the characters and why they are the way they are, this kept my interest in the film.  The characters were superbly cast and the film was funny, really very funny and kept to the true nature of the action-packed show, it was very enjoyable.

THE KARATE KID

GENRE:  Family/ Action/ Drama
MADE:  2010
CAST:  Jackie Chan, Jaden Smith
DIRECTOR:  Harald Zwart
WRITER:  Christopher Murphey & Robert Mark Kamen

PLOT:  Sherry Parker and her son Dre relocate to China from New York.  Adjustment is hard for Dre, the new kid on the block.  Unable to fight off Kung-Fu bullies Dre learns the art of Kung-Fu from a master disguised as a maintenance man.

PARALLEL UNIVERSE:  Remember The Titans, Kung Fu Panda, E.T.

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