In this episode we turn to the dark side of the force! And yes we speak of “He who must not be named”! Will one Villain rule them all? You’ll have to listen in to find out. Visit our facebook page and leave us a comment and your villains list!

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From evil queens to Greek Gods the Movie Madness Podcast has you covered! Which movie takes the prize this week?  The Movie Maniac, Doug and Tom do there best to break it down for you in this weeks fantasy laden Mini Review! Don’t forget to leave your review on our Facebook page

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Watch out paranormal romance. Dystopian science fiction is coming for you. Last night, I saw The Hunger Games, starring the exquisite Jenifer Lawrence, whom I first saw in Winter’s Bone (That’s right, not X-Men). I am a huge fan of the best-selling, award-winning Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins, and I was not disappointed in this adaptation.

The Hunger Games paints a bleak picture of the future: a post-war North America, called Panem, divided into 13 districts whose citizens are compelled by their Capitol to send a young male and female “tribute” to fight to the death every year in the televised, eponymous Hunger Games. It’s not your typical teen date movie, I suppose. Of course, the protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, is not your typical teen girl protagonist. Without giving too much away, I will say that Katniss finds herself competing in the games to survive and on her own terms.

Any film adaptation of a book that I love makes me worry. The Hunger Games, directed by Gary Ross, was pretty faithful to the book without being bogged down in details. Something has to be left out, and I think the screenwriters mostly used good judgment. I was concerned that the audience would be unable to relate to Katniss without her inner monologue provided to the reader in the book (just thank God they didn’t use narration, ick), though the way the film was put together, we could see her justification for her actions and words without it being too painfully obvious. I was also worried that to achieve a PG-13 rating, they would tone down the bloodshed too much. For a book for young teenagers, The Hunger Games is spectacularly violent. The filmmakers were able to tone down a little without diluting the horror of children forced to kill each other by their government. The acting was good for the main characters but less great for the supporting characters. Jennifer Lawrence was wonderful. Also, can I just say how much I love, love, love Woody Harrelson?

My problems with this movie are few. My only technical complaint is the camera work. They overused handheld shoots which made it difficult to follow the action sequences. There was not enough character development for a couple of the characters I think deserved it, and a few plot developments were difficult to follow for viewers who haven’t read the books. I am not someone who needs to be spoonfed everything, but I would have liked more exploration of the power of the Capitol and the Panem Universe. They also downplayed the biting critique on mass media and PR manipulation that made the books so brilliant, but hey, it IS media, so… Also, as my boyfriend informed me, some plot developments were predictable. I understand where he’s coming from, but I do not think the author meant anything to be surprising. The story is about the transformative power of violence and marketing, and the film almost captured it. Let’s hope the rest of the trilogy gets its due, so we can see it fully developed. Rating 3 out of 5 stars.

Its time to “Open the pod bay doors” and get episode two of our Top 10 Hardcore SCI-FI Movies underway! How did our favorites stack up against  yours? Leave a comment or head over to facebook and post your list, maybe we missed one? We’ll never know without your input!

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The Hunger Games won at the box office but did it win over our movie critics Craig and Tom? You’ll have to listen to find out! Help us out and leave your review on our facebook page. It only takes a second and we really want to hear from you!!

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In this episode “We aim to misbehave” as we discuss our favorite Hardcore SCI-FI movies. We tried to sneak a few not so Hardcore SCI-Fi  by the Movie Maniac! But as usual he was there to show us the error of our ways. Listen in and see if you agree. Leave a comment or join us on our Facebook page

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There were so many posters to choose from!

I don’t get out much these days, so I will begin my reviewing with some old, horror favorites. I will start with a film directed by Godfather of Gore, Lucio Fulci, The Beyond, aka, The Seven Doors of Death.

The Beyond is the second and greatest entry in Fulci’s Gates of Hell Trilogy. The plot follows Liza as she seeks to reopen an old Louisiana hotel she inherited, not knowing that it sits on a gate to hell. Evidently, there is no “Gates of Hell” clause in Louisiana’s disclosures in real property laws. Shoot. There is some confusion in this film, as the plot is not entirely linear, and there is a lot of surreal imagery.

The imagery is one of the crowning achievements of The Beyond. Fulci is known for his buckets o’ gore, and he does not fail to disappoint here, with the signature eye-gouging scene, but I really feel the horrifically gross special effects take a backseat to the cinematography. This film is beautifully shot. And for the people who don’t like deliberate pacing and atmosphere, there’s also a blind ghost, killer tarantulas, face melting, and a zombie attack. So there.

The Movie Maniac Craig has emerged from the theater once again! Listen in to find out if 21 Jump Street is the start of something big or something that should have been left in the past. I think you’ll be surprised! As always leave a comment or your review here or on our facebook page.

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Its time to buckle up and put the pedal to the metal! As the guys discuss their favorite car movies. Which car movies raced too the top? You’ll have to listen in to find out. When you finished let us know your picks. Use our new facebook page!

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The guys are back with another round of reviews. Has Eddie Murphy ended his box office skid? Is John Carter the next big franchise for Disney? Listen in and get the guys opinion and then leave yours in our comments section or on facebook!

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