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This feed is subject to our terms of use: http://www.epinions.com/help/rss_terms http://www.epinions.com/user-Mike_Bracken Recent reviews written by member Mike_Bracken en-us 121 37 http://www.epinions.com/ http://img.epinions.com/images/epi_images/logos/epinions_121.gif http://www.epinions.com/content_441167744644?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - While Ben Stiller&#146s latest comedy film, Tropic Thunder isn&#146t a perfect film it is one of the better comedies to come along this summer (although, when your competition is comprised of films like The Love Guru, maybe this is damning it with faint... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~441167744644 Thu, 14 Aug 2008 20:58:14 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_441167744644?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_440457924228?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - In the spirit of full disclosure, I&#146d like to note that author Brian Keene and I are friends. I&#146ve known Brian for years now, from back in the days when we were both struggling fiction writers. Despite this, I don&#146t want anyone to think that... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~440457924228 Fri, 8 Aug 2008 22:35:14 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_440457924228?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_439916203652?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - It’s been said that screenwriting is the new American lottery—and when stories of unknown writers selling spec scripts (which is industry slang for speculative screenplays—scripts written with no guarantee of profit in the hopes that a producer,... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~439916203652 Mon, 4 Aug 2008 18:45:49 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_439916203652?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_438948630148?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - There may be no other videogame subgenre more slavishly devoted to tradition than the Strategy Role-Playing Game (SRPG). The core of the SRPG has remained almost completely unchanged over the past two decades; the games are turn-based, generally involve... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~438948630148 Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:17:22 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_438948630148?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_438824898180?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - As someone who’s been an X-Files fan since near the very beginning of the first season (I admit I missed the first few episodes’ original airings because I was under the impression that it was a paranormal investigation reality show and not a work of... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~438824898180 Sun, 27 Jul 2008 15:28:12 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_438824898180?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_438043512452?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - When Colin Farrell&#146s opening line of dialogue in In Bruges concludes with the statement &#147I didn&#146t even know where Bruges was&#148, I was in the same boat (it&#146s in Belgium, if you&#146re geographically challenged like I apparently am)... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~438043512452 Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:12:11 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_438043512452?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_437510573700?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - Finally, after what seems like an eternity of buzz, waiting, hype, and tragedy, what could easily be the biggest movie of 2008 is upon us: Christopher Nolan&#146s second installment in his re-imagining of DC Comics&#146 Batman, The Dark Knight. Does this... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~437510573700 Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:56:21 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_437510573700?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_437371506308?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - While playing Summon Night Twin Age for this review, I couldn’t help but constantly think of that episode of The Simpsons where Lisa goes to take tap dance classes. In that episode, Little Vicki’s (the former child star/tap instructor) teaching method... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~437371506308 Tue, 15 Jul 2008 13:43:22 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_437371506308?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_436748652164?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - As videogames continue to grow in terms of mainstream popularity (they rival Hollywood in terms of earning power as a medium), there’s been something of a push to recognize the best gamers—those elite few who can do things with a joystick that most of us... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~436748652164 Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:22:37 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_436748652164?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_435546197636?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - While the plot of Burial Ground can be best described as nonsensical, there’s no denying that Andrea Bianchi’s fumetti (a type of Italian comic book) inspired sex and gore fest is a deliriously fun romp through the world of camp cinema. From the opening... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~435546197636 Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:58:59 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_435546197636?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_435545738884?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - I wanna make some films here…some really weird films.—Terry Hawkins For years, The Last House on Dead End Street has been the stuff of cult film legend. This micro-budgeted indie horror film intrigued nearly everyone who was actually fortunate... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~435545738884 Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:50:05 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_435545738884?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_435310792324?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - When I first saw Ryuhei Kitamura’s Versus a few years back (on a grainy bootleg in the days before it hit domestic DVD), I knew immediately that I was watching something special. When your opening shot features a samurai slicing a zombie in half, good... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~435310792324 Sat, 28 Jun 2008 12:27:36 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_435310792324?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_435244273284?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - For years, the Japanese have had the market cornered on technophobic horror flicks. From the videotape of Ringu to the cell phones of One Missed Call, the Japanese have made it pretty clear that while they love technology and gadgets, they’re a little... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~435244273284 Fri, 27 Jun 2008 20:01:02 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_435244273284?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_434065346180?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - TokyoShock, the Asian exploitation branch of film distributors Media Blasters, has long been known for bringing quirky and crazy Japanese films to domestic audiences (my personal favorites being the three Misa Kuroi films that make up the Eko Eko Azarak... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~434065346180 Tue, 17 Jun 2008 19:26:12 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_434065346180?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_433625992836?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - It seems that we can finally christen summer 2008 as the Season of Marvel Comics. Hot off the smashing success that was Iron Man, the comics giant goes two-for-two with the only slightly less impressive The Incredible Hulk. Mention the Green Goliath... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~433625992836 Fri, 13 Jun 2008 19:47:19 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_433625992836?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_433027583620?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - It&#146s official: France is the new horror cinema heavyweight on the world stage. Over the past few years, our beret-wearing friends have given us films like Haute Tension, Sheitan, Them, Calvaire, and Frontier(s)&#151each a genre offering that was... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~433027583620 Sun, 8 Jun 2008 14:58:17 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_433027583620?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_432627420804?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - Running a scant 77 minutes, Them (or Ils in its native French) is a shining example of horror cinema done right. It&#146s a taut and suspenseful stalker film that takes about fifteen minutes setting things up and then jumps right into the crux of the... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~432627420804 Wed, 4 Jun 2008 18:40:02 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_432627420804?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_432477277828?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - There’s no denying that George Romero is an absolute legend in the field of horror cinema. Back in 1968, the Pittsburgh-based filmmaker gave us one of the most enduring horror films of all-time: Night of the Living Dead. The beauty of NotLD is twofold:... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~432477277828 Tue, 3 Jun 2008 12:42:40 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_432477277828?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_432365342340?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - Frontier(s), the latest French horror flick to become something of an underground sensation amongst the hardcore horror contingent (following on the heels of High Tension, Inside, and Them) may not appear to be much more than a Gallic Hostel clone at... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~432365342340 Mon, 2 Jun 2008 14:14:36 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_432365342340?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_431649558148?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - If nothing else, Jeff Dunn's 1998 gorefest Zombie Cult Massacre proves one thing: there is still some truth in advertising when it comes to horror films. Unlike Blood Orgy of the She Devils, Zombie Cult Massacre actually contains zombies, a religious... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~431649558148 Tue, 27 May 2008 17:58:15 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_431649558148?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_431164067460?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - While Wes Craven often gets the nod for bringing self-reflexive and postmodernist tendencies to the horror genre (through his films A New Nightmare and the Scream series), more astute genre fans realize that director Lucio Fulci actually... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~431164067460 Fri, 23 May 2008 14:41:16 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_431164067460?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_430930562692?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - Horror and heavy-metal seem to go together like a plug and a socket, so it&#146s always seemed very odd to me that we didn&#146t see a bunch of heavy-metal themed horror films in the 1980s, when metal was in vogue and slasher cinema was all the rage. In... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~430930562692 Wed, 21 May 2008 17:44:29 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_430930562692?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_430685654660?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - One thing I&#146ve learned during my decade plus as a film critic is that some films are simply critic-proof. No matter what we say or write about them, people will still flock to theaters in order to see them firsthand despite warnings that they may not... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~430685654660 Mon, 19 May 2008 20:57:44 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_430685654660?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_428227858052?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - If we've learned anything during this little excursion into the bowels of gore cinema, it's that no one country has a lock on the creation of disgusting movies. Earlier entries have come from places like Germany, Japan, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and even... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~428227858052 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 01:18:09 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_428227858052?linkin_id=8003929 http://www.epinions.com/content_428227661444?linkin_id=8003929 rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Mike_Bracken - Taking a page or two from the Peter Jackson and Sam Raimi playbooks (the old playbook—from back in the days when they made good films instead of bloated Hollywood flotsam) Jake West has given splatter fans the greatest of gifts—an honest to god gore... http://www.epinions.com/content/submit.html/comment_~428227661444 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 01:15:50 GMT http://www.epinions.com/content_428227661444?linkin_id=8003929