PROMETEUS

You want an alien world created anew, with wonders and horrors lurking in its furrows? You go to Ridley Scott, of course, spectacle maker and pictorialist par excellence. So Prometheus is bound to be eye filling, with fully wrought planetary vistas and occasionally jaw-dropping visual coups. And did we use the word alien back there? Yes, folks, Prometheus is a prequel, in a sideways sort of fashion, to Scott's 1979 Alien original--or at least it's a long-distant stage setter for that story. This one begins with a space mission that could reveal the extraterrestrial roots of Earth, although what's buried out on the planet turns out to be much more complicated than expected. In the midst of suspenseful episodes (and a few contrived plot turns), Prometheus reaches for Big Answers to Big Questions, in a grand old sci-fi tradition. This lends the movie a hint of metaphysical energy, even if Scott's reach extends well, well beyond his grasp. The hokier moments are carried off with brio by Michael Fassbender (the robot on board), Charlize Theron, and Idris Elba, and then you've got Noomi Rapace entering the badass hall of fame for a long, oh-no-they-didn't sequence involving radical surgery, which might just induce the vapors in a few viewers. Even if Prometheus has its holes, the sheer size of the thing is exciting to be around. Because this movie is gigantic. --Robert Horton.

A team of scientists journey through the universe on the spaceship "Prometheus" on a voyage to investigate Alien life forms. The team of scientists becomes stranded on an Alien world, and as they struggle to survive it becomes clear that the horrors they experience are not just a threat to themselves, but to all of mankind. 

EXPENDABLE 2

Let's get one thing straight. You don't go into a movie like The Expendables without knowing what you are getting yourself into. If you've seen the first film and enjoyed its larger-than-life salute to big 80's action stars then you know exactly what you should expect from the sequel. It's more of the same formula: Big on star power machismo, ammunition, and one-liners and simple on plot, exposition and intelligence. The bottom line is; you don't watch The Expendables expecting any Academy Award winning performances. If this doesn't sound like kind of movie that you would normally enjoy watching then you came to the wrong party.

The Boys are BACK: Sylvester Stallone as Barney Ross, Jason Statham as Lee Christmas, Dolph Lundgren as Gunner Jensen, Terry Crews as Hale Caesar, Randy Couture as Toll Road and Jet Li as Yin Yang while Mickey Rourke is out as Tool but the testosterone meter is still off the charts. Liam Hemsworth joins the team as the youngest "expendable" Bill the Kid. The Expendables have been recruited by Church to stop weapons-grade plutonium hidden in a Albanian mine during the Cold War from falling into the wrong hands and it's time to bring in the Dirtier Dozen.

The muscle and all-star power are man-uped the second time around. There's much more Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis this time who only appeared in smaller cameo roles as Trench and Church in the first film and there's more iconic 80's action stars that the fans have been begging to see like Chuck Norris as Booker a.k.a. the "Lone Wolf" and Jean Claude Van Damme as Vilain, and what an apropos "villain" he makes. It seems Steven Seagal is still the odd man out due to a publicized disagreement with the producer Avi Lerner, although when asked if he would be in Expendables 3 his response was "We'll see." Rumor has it that Clint Eastwood and Harrison Ford have already been approached for the third one as well with plans to acquire Nicholas Cage and Wesley Snipes to the Expendables 3 dossier.

Expendables 2 is a blast if you can appreciate it for what it is; it's the guiltiest kind of guilty pleasure and it makes no apologies for being what it is. The first one feels almost like a dress rehearsal but the sequel is bigger and a lot more fun. There are hilarious one-liners and bad puns aplenty and the chemistry between these legendary screen icons takes badassery to a whole new cinematic level. The epic showdown between "The Italian Stallion" Stallone and the "Muscles From Brussels" Van Damme makes it worth the price of admission alone.

LOOPER (BRUCE WILLIS)

It is absolutely glorious when intelligent sci-fi not only re-emerges, but returns and flourishes with spectacular results. Tucked neatly into this technologically and sometimes extraterrestrial genre of film is time travel. While time travel films aren't always done right, when they are they make one hell of an impact; the "Back to the Future" films, the "Terminator" films, "Donnie Darko," "Time Bandits," "Twelve Monkeys," "Source Code," and the fantastic little Spanish film "Timecrimes" are just a few examples. Combine that potential with the impressive writer/director Rian Johnson and an incredible cast that includes Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, and Emily Blunt and you have one of the most anticipated films of the year on your hands with "Looper."

In the year 2044, time travel has not yet been invented but 30 years from now it will have been. After being labeled as illegal, the ability to leap through time is only available on the black market. People who criminal organizations want to get rid of are sent back to 2044 where hired guns called "loopers" dispose of them. Loopers make very good money and Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is living the good life. When a looper's contract nears its expiration, the mob sends back their future self who they then get rid of and have the next 30 years to live their life. It's called "closing the loop." But when Joe's future self (Bruce Willis) is sent back, his life is turned upside down.

While you may not be able to totally buy that Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a younger version of Bruce Willis based on looks alone (even with the use of prosthetics), Gordon-Levitt does deserve credit for developing the ability to act like Willis along with similar facial expressions, mannerisms, and body language. Bruce Willis' character is a really interesting piece of the puzzle. The older version of Joe is committing some of the most heinous crimes imaginable, but his reasoning for it is just. As you're shown his back story, you understand what he's going through and almost find yourself rooting for him. He's like a villain with heart.

Emily Blunt is really fantastic. This might be the most straightforward and emotional that she has ever been in any performance. The addition of her son Cid (Pierce Gagnon) may make or break the film for you as it goes down a path that may find you comparing it to other films. The Cid character is an intriguing one though as his emotions are out of control, but his intentions are good and he's fairly amusing more often than not. While Paul Dano doesn't get a whole lot of screen time, it's amazing that that underhanded smarminess he's often associated with is still able to shine through.

This is Rian Johnson's best work by a landslide and that's coming from someone who absolutely loves his first two films. While the concept is somewhat familiar, it's always going in places you don't expect them to go. Seth's (Paul Dano) side plot is around the time your jaw will hit the floor. The ending is really magnificent, as well. It feels tragic on one hand, but extremely fitting on the other. While the soundtrack seems to kind of pick and choose its moments to really stand out, there are a few instances where it's emotionally overwhelming. It will only get better in repeat viewings and listens.

"Looper" is an astounding piece of cinema no matter how you slice it. Featuring fantastic performances from the entire cast, absorbing cinematography, and one of the most unique concepts for a film in quite some time, "Looper" is one of the most creative, intelligent, and unpredictable films of the year.

THE RAID: REDEMPTION

"The Raid: Redemption" is a movie that pulls no punches. Or maybe that's all it pulls. It's been a long while since I've seen a film so relentless, so brutal, and so unapologetically violent. Writer/Director Gareth Evans' film is a non-stop barrage of fisticuffs, shoot-outs, and explosions. It is a well choreographed exercise in action movie mayhem and it succeeds wholly in its intentions. If you want a nuanced screenplay, in-depth characterizations, or an intricate plot--"The Raid: Redemption" might not be your first choice of entertainment. Don't get me wrong, I like and expect those things too. But if you give yourself over to the visceral experience of this down and dirty movie, it provides more thrills and excitement than a slate of Hollywood blockbusters. If you like action films, this micro-budgeted indie flick shot in Indonesia (yes, it's subtitled but, believe me, the dialogue is relatively minimal) has got to be on the top of your must-see list.

Evans reunites with the star, Iko Uwais, of his previous film "Merantau." While "Merantau" showed promise, it was plagued with a relatively uninspired plot and some serious pacing issues. While I'd still recommend it to fans of the genre, it didn't fully come together in the way that I hoped it would. Both Uwais, as a martial artist and a screen presence, and Evans, as a creative force, have upped their game in "The Raid: Redemption." Uwais plays an upstanding cop who is part of a SWAT team in Jakarta. The plot is very simple on the surface. The officers must infiltrate a slum apartment building that houses a gangland overlord and his band of criminal mercenaries. But on their way to the penthouse suite, they must fend off countless attacks as their numbers dwindle. There is a little political back story, as well, with corruption and greed factoring into the equation as to just why the building is being raided in the first place. You need more plot? Too bad.

What you get instead is relentless action. The pacing is dynamic and the tension escalates throughout. There are some terrific combat scenes, lots of gunfire, and an endless array of hand-to hand fight sequences. The martial arts aspect to the fighting is exciting and extremely well done without being too over the top. "The Raid: Redemption" did quite well on the film festival circuit (winning audience awards in Amsterdam, Toronto, and Dublin) and with the majority of mainstream critics (including raves from the Los Angeles Times and USA Today). The reason seems very simple. The movie doesn't aspire to be anything other than what it is. Evans focused on making a brutal and exhausting bit of ultra-violent escapism. And that's exactly what he and his team delivers. Is it a perfect film? Not particularly. Could it have benefited from improved storytelling? Probably. But what it does provide more than compensates for what it doesn't. In the end, this movie may not be for everyone. That's perfectly fine. But I suspect that the film's reputation will only grow in certain circles making it a true cult classic a few years down the line. About 4 1/2 stars, I'll round up for the sheer madness of it all!

SILENT HILL

First off, if you haven't seen the first film, do that prior to watching this one. Not only will this film make better sense, but I consider "Silent Hill" to one of the top 100 horror films of all time. Clearly this film was not as good as the first. For me, the element of surprise was gone. This production also suffered from plot weakness, trite dialouge, and an unconvincing role by Adelaide Clemens as the lead character. I kept thinking how much better this film could have been if Ms. Clemens had swapped roles with Jennifer Lawrence in "House at the End of the Street."

This film picks up years later as Sharon has grown to 18 years of age and has changed her name to Heather...named after Harry's (Sean Bean) grandmother, the first thing I couldn't buy. He is attempting to live as far away from Silent Hill as possible as long as Heather can be driven there in a few hours, another plot point that didn't make sense, but must of evolved for movie time sake.

So after tearing the film apart, why would I rate it 5 stars? Because I loved it. The horror aspect was done well. They made effective use of darkness, shadows, strobe effects, background noises, whispers, and deformed faceless humans. It is the same reason we watched a dozen or so Jason, Freddie, Puppet Master, or "Hellraiser" films long after they became trite.

There were two great scenes that come to mind in this film: the spider was well done, and the arms through the prison bars scenes I also loved. You will know them when you see them.