Anyone seen Van Helsing yet?

[JSE]

I have heard mixed reviews so far. I really want to see it but also don't want to waste the money if it's a bomb. Better then to wait for the DVD.. It looks pretty cool and Kate Beckensale (sp?) is oh sooooo nice. My wife gave me permission to leave her if Kate wants me.

JSE

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

Well, I went to see it last night. Yeck and double Yeck!!!. This movie is so bad I wanted to destroy the theater itself. The editing is so bad that it reminds me of a really bad MTV video, and it makes the story line kind of schitzoid. Two words on this one.........Hated it!!!

[cam]

I have heard mixed reviews so far. I really want to see it but also don't want to waste the money if it's a bomb. Better then to wait for the DVD.. It looks pretty cool and Kate Beckensale (sp?) is oh sooooo nice. My wife gave me permission to leave her if Kate wants me.

JSE

I can hardly wait until it comes out on dvd so we can have the famous Lexmark puts the sound track through its paces on his uncalibrated system.

[Lexmark3200]

I can hardly wait until it comes out on dvd so we can have the famous Lexmark puts the sound track through its paces on his uncalibrated system.

Now THATS a good one, Cam! Hiding with the bullies of the site again, are ye? Well, here is some news for ya.....the system has been calibrated according to how I was advised; originally, I had stated that the name of the shop was American Hi Fi in Lynbrook, NY....it is actually American Audiophile on Sunrise Highway in Lynbrook, NY.

[JSE]

Damn Sir T.,

Sorry to hear that. I was hoping it would be good. I may still give it a try but I actually talked to a buddy of mine this evening and he said the same thing. His wife wanted to leave the show about 3/4 of the way through it. They did stick it out though. Maybe DVD is the way to go on this one. I hear "The Village" is going to be really good. Can't wait unitl that comes out.

JSE

[wasch_24]

I have been so turned off from the movie theaters lately. For the price of two tickets alone I can wait for the DVD to come out and buy it. If it blows then I'm out the same cash but if it's good then I don't have to spend twenty at the theater and then another twenty on the DVD a few months later. Just my .02 on the movie theater price gouging.

[markw]

I have been so turned off from the movie theaters lately. For the price of two tickets alone I can wait for the DVD to come out and buy it.

My thinking exactly. The only fly in this ointment is that invariably, several months after the DVD release, they somehow manage to scrape together enough deleted secnes to come out with an "extended" version.

As far as LOTR:ROTK goes, they already stated that several months after the initial DVD release of the theatrical version they will release the "extended" version. Is this planned obsolesence at it's best or what?

[wasch_24]

My thinking exactly. The only fly in this ointment is that invariably, several months after the DVD release, they somehow manage to scrape together enough deleted secnes to come out with an "extended" version.

As far as LOTR:ROTK goes, they already stated that several months after the initial DVD release of the theatrical version they will release the "extended" version. Is this planned obsolesence at it's best or what?

The thing with the LOTR DVD's is a good point. Any other title and I don't think I would buy into it. I have bought both each time so far. At least they give us some rebates.

Back on topic: That is very disapointing to hear about Van Helsing.

[JSE]

OK, Went to lunch with another buddy today and he saw it last night. He liked it. He said it was not the best movie by any means but very entertaining. He did say that it was action start to finish. No slow points. Ah hell, maybe I will go see it.

Wasch has a good point. For the price of two tickets you can buy the DVD. Tickets here in Houston run about $7.50 to $8.00 on average and I know that is probably cheap compared to some cities. I have my HT system pretty dialed in now and I can definitely say I enjoy it just as much as the theater. I know the theater has a bigger screen and bigger sound but it also has crowds, people talking during the movies and the cost. And you can't go to the movies without a soda and snack, so add another $10 to $15.

JSE

[Woochifer]

Wow, I guess my impression based on the previews wasn't too far off the mark. It just looked dumb and cheap. Total surprise when I found out that the production costs were in the $160 million range. And it doesn't help that Hugh Jackman never impressed me all that much, and everyone associated with Pearl Harbor (the movie) remains on my banned list. I guess for an alternative view, I'll have to check with a friend of mine who does contract work for Universal. She got to attend the premiere (which means she got in for free) and she's in love with Jackman. I'll have to call her and get her "unbiased" opinion!

OK, Went to lunch with another buddy today and he saw it last night. He liked it. He said it was not the best movie by any means but very entertaining. He did say that it was action start to finish. No slow points. Ah hell, maybe I will go see it.

Wasch has a good point. For the price of two tickets you can buy the DVD. Tickets here in Houston run about $7.50 to $8.00 on average and I know that is probably cheap compared to some cities. I have my HT system pretty dialed in now and I can definitely say I enjoy it just as much as the theater. I know the theater has a bigger screen and bigger sound but it also has crowds, people talking during the movies and the cost. And you can't go to the movies without a soda and snack, so add another $10 to $15.

JSE

You're right, that is pretty cheap. All the stuff you cited with crowds, people talking during movies, plus cellphone chatter, B.O., etc. is partly why I don't go out to movies as much anymore. The other part of course is that my home theater setup is now finished. Whenever I do get out for movies, it seems that more often than not it's whenever I travel to L.A. where at least the Westwood and Hollywood audiences take their moviegoing more seriously than the audiences at a typical suburban megaplex.

I just saw Kill Bill v.2 over at the Cinerama Dome in Hollywood and the ticket there cost $14. I paid $16 for the Kill Bill v.1 DVD, so this is not a huge price difference. But, at the Cinerama Dome, they have reserved seating, plus a full bar in the lobby, and the smaller screens have oversized leather seats. Plus, the service at that theater is outstanding and the audiences aren't talking over the movie. Oh, and an 80-foot wide Cinerama screen doesn't hurt either! For that, I'm willing to pay the extra $4-5 just to have an enjoyable night out at the movies, something I seem to have been having less often with all the neighborhood theaters now consolidating together into these stadium megaplexes.

[JSE]

Wow, I guess my impression based on the previews wasn't too far off the mark. It just looked dumb and cheap. Total surprise when I found out that the production costs were in the $160 million range. And it doesn't help that Hugh Jackman never impressed me all that much, and everyone associated with Pearl Harbor (the movie) remains on my banned list. I guess for an alternative view, I'll have to check with a friend of mine who does contract work for Universal. She got to attend the premiere (which means she got in for free) and she's in love with Jackman. I'll have to call her and get her "unbiased" opinion!



You're right, that is pretty cheap. All the stuff you cited with crowds, people talking during movies, plus cellphone chatter, B.O., etc. is partly why I don't go out to movies as much anymore. The other part of course is that my home theater setup is now finished. Whenever I do get out for movies, it seems that more often than not it's whenever I travel to L.A. where at least the Westwood and Hollywood audiences take their moviegoing more seriously than the audiences at a typical suburban megaplex.

I just saw Kill Bill v.2 over at the Cinerama Dome in Hollywood and the ticket there cost $14. I paid $16 for the Kill Bill v.1 DVD, so this is not a huge price difference. But, at the Cinerama Dome, they have reserved seating, plus a full bar in the lobby, and the smaller screens have oversized leather seats. Plus, the service at that theater is outstanding and the audiences aren't talking over the movie. Oh, and an 80-foot wide Cinerama screen doesn't hurt either! For that, I'm willing to pay the extra $4-5 just to have an enjoyable night out at the movies, something I seem to have been having less often with all the neighborhood theaters now consolidating together into these stadium megaplexes.

One alternative that I have found here in Houston is a place called Alamo Theater. It's a cross between a restaurant and a movie theater. You can watch the movie, drink beer and have some food at the same time. It get's a little loud sometimes but it's fun for movies that you really don't have to follow that close. Also, one theater here shows movies on the IMAX screen. I saw Spiderman that way. Pretty cool.

JSE

[Lexmark3200]

Saw this tonight and thought it was pretty awesome; agreed though that the editing made the pacing and plotlines a bit schitzo....all these films lately, seems from Daredevil on down, are made the same way....fast-paced, MTV video-style editing techniques and tons upon tons of CGI....the theater where I saw Van Helsing, though, the Long Beach Independent Cinemas in Long Beach, NY, had an AWESOME sound system set up for this one...MAN did this film rock in this theater. Turned a bit too high up on the volume --- I mean it was LOUD --- but the surround effects and everything else were spot on....I was floored by the audio presentation at this theater. Dont know if this was/will be a DTS release.

[Geoffcin]

I have heard mixed reviews so far. I really want to see it but also don't want to waste the money if it's a bomb. Better then to wait for the DVD.. It looks pretty cool and Kate Beckensale (sp?) is oh sooooo nice. My wife gave me permission to leave her if Kate wants me.

JSE

I wanted to like this movie but it wasn't to be. Kate's performance was almost as flat as her accent was funny. There was little chemisty between her and Hugh Jackman either.
To be honest, the best acting in the whole movie was done by the actor that played Egore, and the Frankenstein monster. The CGI was first rate, but the effects were all just eye candy. There was only one scene that made you jump, and it was a animatronic, or even just a puppet effect.

I'ld give it a two star out of five. They should send this one straight to DVD release it should play well on a HT.

PS. I think Kate is HOT too!

[kexodusc]

Yeah, first rate special effects, lousy everything else.

It reminds me of "The Mummy".....part 2. Yuck!
Still, I shoudn't have expected much based on the previews. Mildly entertaining a best, I'd give it 3 stars though, 2 stars is reserved for such flops as "Wing Commander".

[Geoffcin]

Yeah, first rate special effects, lousy everything else.

It reminds me of "The Mummy".....part 2. Yuck!
Still, I shoudn't have expected much based on the previews. Mildly entertaining a best, I'd give it 3 stars though, 2 stars is reserved for such flops as "Wing Commander".

OK, I'll give it another 1/2 star for the special effects. The Frankenstien monster was first rate. I'll even go so far as saying that it's 3 star for HT.

I actually liked some of the Mummy part II, but then again I've got the hots for Rachel Weisz. The sceen with the fight between her and Patricia Velasquez when they were dressed as Egyptians is killer.

[Lexmark3200]

Agreed --- this too reminded me of Mummy and/or Mummy 2; man.....what a piece of ass Kate is was all I kept thinking watching this and trying not to concentrate on those gigantic tits behind that bodice.....