Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade — Great sequel full of adventure — 8*/10

• Overall: This one is up to par with the first chapter (read my review here) and since it's newer, its special effects are still looking. Steven Spielberg and George Lucas took good care this time to honor their original work.
• Who is it for? Anyone looking for some solid adventure.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097576/
• Known actors: Harrison Ford and Sean Connery.
• Cameos: John Rhys-Davies.
• Setting: Around the world in 1938, mostly Europe and the Middle East.
• Style: Same action fueled adventure with jokes and a bit of fantasy. This time, the intrigue is more fleshed out which makes for a great flick.
• Pacing: Riveting, with a few quiet times.
• Intro: Again with some juicy morsels from the past to the present.
• Story: Going from one clue to another, following trail full of danger and obstacle, fighting bad guys.
• Ending: Great.
• Dialogs: Funny, but in a frank and, at times, almost scholarly way.
• Characters: Very solid, except for the bad guys who are, as usual, very archetypical.
• Acting: Excellent, all around, which makes it the best Indiana Jones film on this aspect.
• Visuals: Beautiful.
• Special Effects: Good. Aged really well, considering they're close to three decades old.
• Costumes: Excellent.
• Score: Same lively masterful work by the great John Williams.

Casualties of War — A poignant war crime movie set in Vietnam — 8*/10

• Overall:  A great gripping dramatic movie by Brian De Palma that aged perfectly well. 
• Who is it for? Anyone looking for a drama or something about war. Highly recommended.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097027/
• Known actors: Michael J. Fox, Sean Penn, John C. Reilly, John Leguizamo, Ving Rhames and Dale Dye.
• Setting: The infamous Vietnam War.
• Style: Psychological meltdown. It's not about the fighting, but a narrow and dramatic set of its impacts.
• Pacing: Well divided in its basic parts.
• Intro: You really get a feeling for the original squad, and it quickly goes to shit, maybe a bit too quickly.
• Story: You can't help but feel the misery, anguish, and tension, even the psychosis, the unfolding events are causing.
• Ending: Solid.
• Dialogs: Great, but in some cases, when the main character is looking for meaning, they're not realistic and feel a bit scripted when viewed multiple times.
• Characters: You can really see what makes them tick. They're well built, even if some are a bit stereotypical.
• Acting: Mesmerizing.
• Score: Powerful and high flying.

Dead Poets Society - Life must be lived with a clear mind - 10*/10

Dead Poets Society is a coming of age movie about forging your own path, following your own beat, and thinking for yourself. The acting is extremely good, the story very compelling as well as touching, and the strong dramatic tone of the film is nicely, if only slightly, soften by a few well placed laughs. It has all the characteristics of a teen flick, but done in with solid and serious cinematic rigour.

For those who don't mind facing reality straight on.
10*/10

Casualties of War — A troubling movie on a terrible fact of war — 8*/10

Casualties of War shows that war can be ugly for more than the obvious reasons. A great dramatic piece by Brian De Palma.

The good. Excellent score. Once past the intro, powerful mood. Riveting story. Well built scenario, very logical and nicely paced. Emotionally disturbing.

The actors. Michael J. Fox and Sean Penn are just perfect as antagonist. Don Harvey fits his crazy role very well. John C. Reilly plays the simpleton with convincing clarity. And I'll just mention in passing a good performance by Ving Rhames.

The bad. The initial jungle scenes lack realism, as well as some over-acting by the black guy in the first part.

The ugly. Nothing.

The result. An emotional and brutal movie. Not for the faint of heart.

8*/10

Batman — It introduced a darker version of that super hero — 8*/10

Batman is the seminal version by Tim Burton. It was the first good Batman movie, and it took decades until it was ever bettered. When it came out, it was a stunner!

The good. Excellent score by Danny Elfman that truly puts us in the mood. Original songs by Prince. Great photography that really gives life to the Gotham City of the comic books. Superb vision by Burton. Very interesting story. Well built scenario with a good pace.

The actors. Jack Nicholson is the real star of the movie. Not only is he the best actor, but he fits the role of the insane Joker perfectly. Michael Keaton has always left me cold as Batman, but he does a credible job, if nothing else.

The bad. The miniatures are starting to show, but considering the age of the movie, it's easy to see that the original work was excellent, and it doesn't detract us from the story.

The ugly. Nothing.

The result. A great super hero movie, if you don't mind a bit of age. Highly recommended to the fans of Burton and Nicholson.

8*/10

The Blood of Heroes — A post apocalyptic movie about a brutal sport born of the desolation — 9*/10

The Blood of Heroes is set in a desolate post apocalyptic future, and you can taste the dirt and the misery. It also shows Rutger Hauer at his best.

This flick never rose to fame, probably because of its weird choice of topic, a brutal game that looks like a mix of chess, american football, and ancient Rome gladiatorial combat. There's blood and pain at every turn. So it's not for everyone, but the quality is there.

The imagery, costumes, makeup, and action are without reproach. The story might not bring anything new to the table, but the world sure does, and it's showed in full details. The dialogs are simple, yet very effective, and no quick easy slick remark, jut hard harsh statements fitting the whole scene.

The only reproach I would make is that the pellicle is getting old, and without clean images, it's getting tougher to appreciate. No widescreen, no HD. Bummer. Still, its age does show beyond that, the rest is impeccable.

If you don't mind violence, see it.

9*/10

The 'Burbs — Suburbia antics and over active imagination — 6*/10

The 'Burbs is silly to say the least. Imagine goofy suburbanite neighbors with a over active imaginations, add strange new comers, and you can get where it's going.

Most of the action takes place on the outside set, and it really gives this small neighborhood a lived-in feel. With the different point of views, and each persona well integrated, the whole place quickly becomes real in your mind.

It's definitely from a late 80s mold and it doesn't go out of its way to break it, but it has aged well. The story line is interesting, and the antics of our eager spies comical enough to make us easily forget that it is getting old.

There's only two scenes I don't like. 1) Art's over eating. Movies often over do it when it comes to food, and food noise, but that's ridiculous. At least, it's all located in a single spot and it doesn't spill over the rest of the film. 2) The husband and wife fight which is poorly placed to serve as a hinge.

Finally, I only realized last year that the wife of the main character is Carrie Fisher, miss Princess Leia herself. After Star Wars, it got difficult to pick her out of a lineup, and this movie is a good example of that. She's not a bad actress, she's just a plain one.

It's good entertainment, if you don't mind the 80s or if you're a fan of Tom Hanks.

6*/10