WheelMan Press Reviews

An Exciting Adventure for Loyal Stargate Fans!

Stargate - The Ark of Truth (Starring: Ben Browder, Amanda Tapping) - $16.99

As a long time Stargate SG-1 fan who has come and gone throughout the ten-year run of the series, and had been watching quite regularly for the last couple of years, I was sad to hear that the show was finally coming to an end. When you grow so close to characters that you feel they are as much a part of your life as the real people in your life, the thought of losing these characters can really instill an impending sense of loss within you. And in some ways, I was feeling this very thing as the show neared its end.

And then I began hearing about the Stargate movies. While excited to see the films when they came out, I was also apprehensive, because the fatal flaw inherent in the act of anticipation is that such things can rarely live up to one's high expectations. But as it turns out, Stargate - The Ark of Truth far exceeded my expectations.

The film picks up and completes the Ori saga which had dominated the series for its last two seasons, and takes us into the Ori galaxy in search of The Ark of Truth, the only device capable of stripping the Ori of their powers by revealing the "truth" to their devout followers. The movie is classic Stargate, except it feels bigger, more grand in scale and scope. Even though it wasn't shown on a big screen, you get a bit of the cinematic experience when watching SG-1 travel to the Ori galaxy and doing battle on several different fronts, as always walking on the brink of disaster. While each of the characters get their just moments in the spotlight, Cam Mitchell (played excellently as always by Ben Browder) steals the show with some of the best action scenes I've ever seen in a Stargate show. The movie is a fitting ending to the series as a whole, and also puts a nice cap to the Ori saga.

The DVD extras are also nice. My favorites were the behind the scenes special which runs about half an hour, and the footage of the Q &A session filmed at ComicCon. Getting to see Ben Browser, Amanda Tapping, and Christopher Judge as themselves was quite fun. And for those not familiar with the series or the Ori storyline, there is a prelude which will catch you up on the storyline and lead you right into "The Ark of Truth."

So if you are a fan of Stargate, or of good adventurous Science Fiction, give "Stargate - The Ark of Truth," a try!

One of the greatest war films ever made...

Below review originally written October 24, 2003:

Grave of the Fireflies (Starring Tsutomu Tatsumi, Ayano Shiraishi) - $26.99

"Grave of the Fireflies" is the sad tale, based on the semi-autographical book "Hotaru no Haka" by NOSAKA Akiyuki, which tells of the author's experiences during the aftermath of World War II, in which he lost his little sister to malnutrition, for which he blamed himself.

In the movie, 14 year old Seita and his 4 year old sister Setsuko lose their mother after the Allied forces bomb their village. Their father is in the Navy and at sea, and hasn't been heard from in a long while. Without going through the entire plot, suffice it to say that the story is a moving and frightening look back at the lives of two young children who should never have to face such horrors at their tender ages. The tone and mood of this heartwrenching piece is set from the very first scene, when Seita utters the fateful words "September 21st, 1945. That's the day that I died."

Before watching "Grave of the Fireflies" I'd heard that it'd been referred to by many, like movie reviewer Roger Ebert, as one of the greatest war films made, and after watching it, I have to agree. Only a person with the emotional depth of a gnat or the heart of block of wood could watch this film and not feel the emotional power of it. It's the kind of story that lingers in your consciousness long after, and forces you to see the true face of war, the REAL consequences and victims of the violence we seem all too quick to inflict upon each other these days. And the most incredible thing about this movie is its subtleness, its complete lack of political propaganda or any attempt to try to blantantly force a moralistic ideal down the viewers throat. Director Isao Takahata shows supreme trust in the story itself, choosing to use the beautifully illustrated film to portray the tale in all its moving glory.

Good story overall

Black Blood Brothers, Chapter 1 - Bad Tidings (Starring: Ryoko Nagata, Takashi Matsuyama) - $26.99

I enjoy anime, though I'm admittedly not an expert in the genre by far. Sometimes anime, especially the episodic variety, can be a bit cheesy, and Black Blood Brothers definitely has its moments. But once I got into the story, it definitely held my interest, and the story of Mochizuki, the "Silver Blade," and his little brother Kotaro, was a fun little adventure. I did find the flashbacks a bit disorienting at times because it wasn't always very clear as to what we were supposed to be learning from the flashback (which is the sole purpose of a flashback, to learn relevant info applicable to the present day situation), but overall this twist on the tried and true vampire tale left me not only fairly satisfied with the outcome of Chapter 1 in the tale, but also reminded me of another classic anime series from my childhood, Speed Racer, due to the style of humor peppered through the tale.

If you're into anime adventure that doesn't take itself too seriously, then give this DVD a try.

One of the better movies I've seen recently

Spiral (Starring Amber Tamblyn, Joel David Moore) - $13.49

From the very beginning of the movie, two things are clear.

First, this isn't some big-budget Hollywood thriller whose high-profile casting and slick production values are meant to lure you into believing the film is markedly better than it actually is.

And secondly, despite being a low budget movie, that this is indeed a well made film that grabs your attention right away and promises to be a compelling tale. And for me personally, this movie pays off on its promises quite well.

This is the story of Mason (portrayed brilliantly by co-writer and co-director Joel David Moore), a withdrawn and clearly disturbed man who has many problems, including severe asthma, and a past that seems to haunt his every day life. From the very first scene we're led to believe that he's done something terrible involving a woman whose portrait he has drawn or painted several times, and fills his apartment. Without going too deeply into the plot (which other reviews have already explored, I'm sure), suffice it to say that over time, Mason meets and begins to fall in love with a new woman, Amber Tamblyn, whom then becomes the new object of his obsession.

What I like about this story is that it seems to intentionally avoid turning into one of the gory, slasher, blood-bath movies that seem to be all the rage these days. I think the comparisons with Hitchcocking horror are a bit stretched, but it's not completely irrelevant either. This is a psychological horror tale that explores the human frailties and the desperate need for acceptance that most of us face on some level each day. Both the lead character, Mason, and his new girlfriend Amber seem to both be looking for that special someone who will fill out the missing parts and make them whole. The fact that they find each other, and that for a while you really begin to hope and pray that this ends in the proverbial "And They Lived Happily Ever After" is a direct testament to the acting of Moore and Tamblyn.

The movie's plot isn't the greatest, but frankly, it's a simple movie and a simple tale, and I think it's the perfect vehicle in which the actors themselves should be allowed to carry the movie, which they did to great effect. And given the fact that this is a horror movie and are fairly certain that a happy ending just isn't in the cards, it's hard to expect a film like this to have a new and innovative ending. And yet, I have to admit that the twist that ensues did in fact surprise me and left me feeling sad. The movie treats Mason as a flawed human being who is worthy of compassion, rather than the mindless monster of a man without a soul that populates most horror stories today, and I found that, and the lack of copious amounts of fake blood splattering the screen, to be quite refreshing.

The movie is not perfect, but in my opinion nothing ever is anyway. But what it is is a very well done, straightforward, psychological horror of a man for who you expect the worst from, but find yourself hoping for the best for. And as a writer who fancies himself merely an old-fashioned storyteller, this is one of the better told stories I've seen in a while.