Epinions Recent Reviews for Pavel21

Lady in the Water: Lady in the Water: Remember that it's a bedtime story.

Mon, 24 Jul 2006 10:30:21 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Fair or not, specific expectations exist for an M. Night Shyamalan film. For reasons both created by him and thrust upon him, one anticipates a well-crafted film,wrought with tension, filled with complex narratives that drive toward a revelatory...

Superman Returns: Superman Returns: Good, but not better than ever.

Wed, 12 Jul 2006 14:07:58 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - First a preface... I apologize for the countless comparisons to the first two films, but they are virtually mandated. Superman is the best cinematic adaptation of a comic book yet, and Superman II is a solid sequel. That pedigree...

Mission: Impossible III = Wendy's.

Tue, 23 May 2006 10:31:58 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Making a good film sequel is a tricky task. The very reasons that demand a sequel are part of its downfall. The original is usually a good movie, or popular at the very least. Expectations are thus built in, and while succeeding at the box office often...

United 93: A potent reminder of tragedy and the power of the human spirit.

Fri, 12 May 2006 15:26:35 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Hey...I'm still alive. Just had a severe case of the movie blahs after the Oscars. On with the show... Made less than five years after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, United 93 is a film that could have failed on a dozen different...

Good Night, and Good Luck.: Good Night, and Good Luck...to this movie at the Oscars.

Fri, 3 Feb 2006 13:45:14 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - In the 1950s, CBS newscaster Edward R. Murrow did what virtually no one else dared. At the height of the Cold War, he objected to Senator Joseph McCarthy's raging campaign against Communism. That's about all many people (such as myself) know about the...

3-Iron: Give it a swing.

Mon, 30 Jan 2006 14:32:59 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - From Korean director Ki-duk Kim (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...and Spring) comes 3-Iron (Bin-jip), a film with similar methods that explores similar themes, although in a very disparate setting. The male protagonist Tae-suk...

Munich: Good, but a missed opportunity.

Wed, 25 Jan 2006 14:41:17 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Steven Spielberg's Munich is a return to the director's serious nature. Although the spy thriller subject matter is closer to Minority Report than Schindler's List, the tone is far more like Saving Private Ryan than...

Syriana: Where intelligence and entertainment diverge.

Sat, 7 Jan 2006 17:20:57 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - From Stephen Gaghan, the Oscar-winning writer of 2000's Traffic, comes Syriana, an ambitious film that shrugs off standard categorization. It's a political thriller that unusually emphasizes the politics over the thrills, with a dense plot...

The best poker hands played by the best poker players.

Thu, 22 Dec 2005 14:15:20 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - The Best Hand I Ever Played, by syndicated Chicago Tribune poker columnist Steve Rosenblum, is a poker pastiche. As it features some of the wackiest and wildest moments in the careers of 52 known poker players, the book also provides brief...

King Kong rules.

Sat, 17 Dec 2005 17:06:20 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - As the follow-up to his epic Lord of the Rings Trilogy, director Peter Jackson chose one of the few stories that might be able to rival Tolkien's work in scope, a King Kong remake bigger and badder than either of its predecessors. The...

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe: Narnia provides the best movie experience of the year (for me).

Wed, 14 Dec 2005 14:47:41 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Let's get something out of the way: this is not an easy movie for me to review with objectivity, because more than any other story adapted to film, I have a personal connection to The Chronicles of Narnia. My dad read them to me when I was very...

An excellent glimpse into high school playground hoops and college basketball recruiting.

Mon, 28 Nov 2005 13:40:09 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Much of the power of books stems from their ability to convey a world never otherwise experienced. Usually this aptitude refers to fictional fantasy-type books like The Lord of the Rings. But the transportation may be even more impressive or...

Goblet of Fire: The worst Harry Potter movie yet.

Mon, 21 Nov 2005 15:19:32 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Note: I have read only the first four Harry Potter books. Take that as you will. Isn't this inevitable in any cinematic series? Maybe even more so given all of the behind-the-scenes changes between the Harry Potter films? Isn't...

The most personal and passionate book on the Red Sox World Series title.

Wed, 16 Nov 2005 14:39:30 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Note: The proper final title is Now I can Die in Peace: How ESPN's Sports Guy Found Salvation, with a Little Help from Nomar, Pedro, Shawshank, and the 2004 Red Sox. The one seen here is apparently a preliminary appellation. On with...

Mr. & Mrs. Smith: Mindless entertainment packed with It.

Tue, 1 Nov 2005 14:28:56 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Sometimes you're just in the mood for an escapist movie. Nothing too intelligent; nothing too twisting or unpredictable; just good-looking people living their ridiculously interesting lives. For women, this form of entertainment usually comes in the...

The Constant Gardener: Constantly un-absorbing.

Thu, 13 Oct 2005 14:15:22 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Based on the eponymous novel, The Constant Gardener is an anomaly among recent movies, a thriller that, for better and worse, primarily appeals to the intellect rather than emotions, which makes for an interesting but not absorbing film. The...

Crash: Be ready to ponder.

Fri, 7 Oct 2005 13:04:54 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - From Oscar-nominated screenwriter Paul Haggis (M
illion
Dollar Baby) comes his directorial debut, the adult drama Crash, a project that is nothing if not ambitious,commenting on many of the powerful and...

Mike Sexton's book feels like a 200-page World Poker Tour brochure.

Tue, 6 Sep 2005 13:09:26 GMT

rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - As the poker literature market continues to boom, every professional seems to be releasing on a book. Mike Sexton, host of The Travel Channel's World Poker Tour (WPT) and one of the game's more recognizable faces, makes his foray into the market...

Did you hear about the richest poker game ever?

Mon, 29 Aug 2005 13:02:14 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - If you have followed the poker world over the last few years, you may have heard wild rumors about the ongoing saga of Texas billionaire Andy Beal and numerous poker professionals. They were playing for $100 million?! Blinds were $1 million and $2...

Red-Eye: Finally a good summer movie!

Wed, 24 Aug 2005 11:06:45 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Let's face it: this has been a bad summer for cinema, even for popcorn movies. Granted, I've seen fewer flicks this summer as well, but that blame can largely be pinned on the lack of creative concepts and intriguing trailers. Flying in the face of...

Like its subject, March of the Penguins has wings, but cannot fly.

Thu, 18 Aug 2005 13:03:08 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - March of the Penguins is the latest independent film phenomenon, garnering much attention, both critically from renowned reviewers and financially at the box office. But I still wondered how a seemingly mundane story, the Antarctic life cycle of...

The worst war movie in recent memory.

Mon, 8 Aug 2005 13:22:11 GMT

rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - I love war movies and usually keep tabs on the upcoming films in the genre. Therefore I was shocked last week when I saw a television commercial for The Great Raid, a movie I had heard nothing about. Now I know why. Inspired by actual events,...

How is poker like life? Read this book to find out.

Mon, 11 Jul 2005 13:02:46 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Amongst the glut of poker books that are hitting the market, one can find countless how-to guides of various utile, too many of which have pretenses of perfection, regardless of actual quality. This is not one of those books. Aimed at anyone with an...

War of the Worlds: I enjoyed it...right up until the last ten minutes.

Mon, 4 Jul 2005 14:53:48 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - (Note: Major spoilers occur only in the clearly marked paragraph.) Spielberg. Cruise. Aliens. How can you go wrong? Well... With War of the Worlds, director Steven Spielberg has crafted a paradox: a movie with the subject of alien invasion...

Need more Star Wars? Check out this book.

Fri, 24 Jun 2005 14:15:33 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author Pavel21 - Let me get one thing straight, right off the bat here, right now: I am not a Star Wars geek...but I do understand them. --Todd Hanson That statement, taken from my favorite chapter of this book, best encapsulates my relationship with...