Pacific Rim (2013)

Plot Summary

When monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity's resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes-a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)-who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind's last hope against the mounting apocalypse.

Director: Guillermo del Toro

Screenplay: Travis Beacham & Guillermo del Toro

Story: Travis Beacham

Stars: Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi

Budget: $180,000,000 (estimated)

Reviews

The Telegraph: At first, watching Pacific Rim feels like rediscovering a favourite childhood cartoon – but del Toro has flooded the project with such affection and artistry that, rather than smiling nostalgically, you find yourself enchanted all over again - 5/5

Film.com: It is one of the better dumbass sci-fi action movies to come down the pike in quite some time - 4/5

Total Film: A huge, CGI-heavy popcorner that still feels personal. Come for the epic monster-on-mecha showdowns, stay for the likeable humans - 4/5

The Guardian: Pacific Rim's wafer-thin psychodrama and plot-generator dialogue provides little for the human component to get their teeth into - 3/5

Village Voice: Pacific Rim is big and dumb in a smart way - 4/5

The Hollywood Reporter: To kill time between action set-pieces, del Toro has done an above-average job of avoiding tedium via some flavorsome casting, passably interesting plot contrivances and, above all, by maintaining strong forward momentum. Unlike so many similar crash-bang action spectaculars, this one feels lean and muscular rather than bloated or padded; the combat is almost always coherent and dramatically pointed rather than just splashed on the screen for its own sake - 3.5/5

indieWIRE: Too in love with itself to ever totally go off the rails, Pacific Rim doesn't qualify as the first full-on dud of del Toro's career, but it's hard not to get the sense that something's missing - 3.4/5

Slant Magazine: Guillermo del Toro doesn't rise above the obligations of staging a film of this sort as a multi-level video game, a stylish but programmatic ride toward an inevitable final boss battle - 3/5

Empire: Del Toro is giving scope to a boyhood lust for mayhem, the multi-million-dollar equivalent of kicking over sandcastles and torturing insects. There is something infectiously juvenile in that - 3/5

Variety: Although assembled with consummate care and obsessive attention to visual detail, Pacific Rim manages only fitful engagement and little in the way of real wonderment, suspense or terror - 2/5

The Verge: Del Toro makes one of the most satisfying movies of the summer - and one of the best of his career - by creating not just a new world, but one whose mythology actually deserves a universe - 4/5

Yahoo Movies:  Pacific Rim offers a few laughs and a few thrills, but it feels like a very large platter serving a disappointingly meager meal - 3/5

MovieMoReview Rating of Pacific Rim  -  3.5/5

Despicable Me 2 (2013)

Plot Summary

While Gru, the ex-supervillain is adjusting to family life and an attempted honest living in the jam business, a secret Arctic laboratory is stolen. The Anti-Villain League decides it needs an insider's help and recruits Gru in the investigation. Together with the eccentric AVL agent, Lucy Wilde, Gru concludes that his prime suspect is the presumed dead supervillain, El Macho, whose his teenage son is also making the moves on his eldest daughter, Margo. Seemingly blinded by his overprotectiveness of his children and his growing mutual attraction to Lucy, Gru seems on the wrong track even as his minions are being quietly kidnapped en masse for some malevolent purpose.

Directors: Pierre Coffin, Chris Renaud

screenplay: Ken Daurio, Cinco Paul

Stars: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Benjamin Bratt

Budget: $76,000,000 (estimated)

Gross: $142,075,710 (USA) (5 July 2013)

Reviews

Now Public: Definitely a crowd pleaser for all ages that could easily become a full-blown franchise should a third movie be made - 4/5

IBN Live: It is alternately funny and heartfelt - 3.5/5

NDTV: Consistently diverting and so cute you’ll want to pet it. Yet it is also weightless and lacks a center - 3.5/5

DNA: It's fun, smart, engaging and beautifully animated. Despicable 2 will make you revisit its predecessor and enjoy Gru's adventures all over again - 3.5/5

The New Zealand Herald: The aesthetic of the film feels unique and the voice talents are all on form. Forgettable fun - 3/5

NewsOK: If “Despicable Me 2” gives us a far less than despicable (perhaps even toothless) Gru and an overload of riotous Minions (sometimes turned into purple meanies by a secret serum), it nonetheless has wonky charms enough to keep kids from squirming in their seats and adults from furtively eyeing the exits. It’s not Pixar, but what’s not to love? - 2.5/5

Hindustan Times: It may not be as awesome as the first and may fall below your expectations, so don't go hoping for too much from the film and you might just enjoy the film more than the critics. We still feel you should go for the minions or you could wait till next year, when they return with their own film next year called Minions! - 3/5

MovieMoReview Rating of Despicable Me 2  -  3.5/5

Lootera (2013)

Plot Summary

The year is 1953. A visiting archaeologist called Varun Shrivastav comes to the village of Manikpur in West Bengal to excavate the temple grounds of the local Zamindar. With knowledge and experience beyond his young demeanour, Varun greatly impresses the Zamindar and his family. Especially Pakhi, the Zamindar's feisty and only daughter, who finds herself irrevocably drawn towards him. But Varun isn't all he seems on the surface. And as the simmering attraction between him and Pakhi leads to a tender and deep love, he is forced to choose between her and his past. Making his choice, Varun disappears. Pakhi struggles to move on with her life, determined to forget him and their relationship. Until one day, when he returns under the most extraordinary circumstances. Inspired from O. Henry's "The Last Leaf", Lootera is the uplifting story of two lovers. Of heartbreak, betrayal... and ultimate redemption.

Director: Vikramaditya Motwane

Screenplay: Bhavani Iyer & Vikramaditya Motwane

Dialogue: Anurag Kashyap

Budget: $6,000,000 (estimated)

Reviews

Rediff by Raja Sen: Lootera is an absolute masterpiece - 5/5

NDTV: Lootera is a Bollywood miracle – a rare Mumbai film that is mounted on a lavish scale and yet dares not to play by the established norms of the marketplace - 4/5

Times of India: Lootera is a love saga of yore - 4/5

DNA: Lootera charms you and slowly draws you into its lost world - 3/5

Firstpost: Sonakshi impresses but Lootera is boring - 2.5/5

Oneindia: A classic love story - 4/5

Economic Times: While it has a lot of its own, Lootera will steal our heart too - 3/5

Indian Express: Sonakshi Sinha is the real looteri - 2.5/5

in.com: Lootera steals your heart - 4/5

India TV: ‘Lootera’ is surprisingly that one love saga which portrays the flavour of that period so efficiently that nobody has anything to complain but to adore the glorifying feel that results out of the hushed moments - 3.5/5

Bollywoodlife: The classic love story mesmerizes, but does not overwhelm! - 3/5

MovieMoReview Rating of Lootera  -  4/5

Movies with Similar Plots

1997: "Dante's Peak" and "Volcano" both revolve around the cast outrunning erupting volcanoes

Box Office

"Dante's Peak": $178 million
"Volcano": $122.8 million

1998: The Earth was nearly destroyed in both "Armageddon" and "Deep Impact."

Box Office

"Armageddon": $553.7 million

"Deep Impact": $349.5 million

1998: "Antz" and "A Bugs Life" both follow life from an ant's point of view

Box Office

"Antz": $171.8 million

"A Bug's Life": $363.4 million

2000: Both "Mission to Mars" and "Red Planet" follow explorations to the planet that go awry

Box Office

"Mission to Mars": $111 million

"Red Planet": $33.5 million

2002: "Phone Booth" and "Liberty Stands Still" hold the main characters hostage at one point for the film's entirety

Box Office

"Phone Booth": $97.8 million

"Liberty Stands Still": $595,000*

2003/2004: "Finding Nemo" and "Shark Tale" both dive to the seas. Years later, one fish tale is more memorable than the other.

Box Office

"Finding Nemo": $921.7 million

"Shark Tale": $367.3 million

2004: "Chasing Liberty" and "First Daughter" both follow the lives of the president's daughter.

Box Office

"Chasing Liberty": $12.3 million

"First Daughter": $10.6 million

2005/2006: "The Cave" and "The Descent" take us on scary journeys deep below Earth's surface.

Box Office

"The Cave": $33.3 million

"The Descent": $57 million

2005/2006: "Madagascar" had little competition from Disney's "The Wild" about animals getting loose from the zoo.

Box Office

"The Wild": $102.3 million

"Madagascar": $532.7 million

2005/2006: "Capote" and "Infamous" are both about the story of Truman Capote.

Box Office

"Capote": $49.2 million

"Infamous": $2.6 million (only released in 179 theaters)

2006: "The Prestige" and "The Illusionist" both captivated us with magic.

Box Office

"The Prestige": $109.7 million

"The Illusionist": $87.9 million

2006: "World Trade Center" and "United 93" both tell the story of 9/11 from different perspectives.

Box Office

"World Trade Center": $163 million

"United 93": $76.3 million

2006: "The Black Dahlia" and "Hollywoodland" both follow unsolved murders based on true stories.

Box Office

"The Black Dahlia": $49.3 million

"Hollywoodland": $16.8 million

2006/2007: Only one penguin film could come out on top between "Happy Feet" and "Surf's Up."

Box Office

"Happy Feet": $384.3 million

"Surf's Up": $149 million

2009: Hollywood became obsessed with security giving us "Mall Cop" and "Observe & Report."

Box Office

"Paul Blart: Mall Cop": $183.3 million

"Observe and Report": $27 million

2009: "2012" and "Knowing" both follow events leading to the end of the world.

Box Office

"2012": $769.7 million

"Knowing": $183.6 million

2009/2010: Out of control trains plague "The Taking of Pelham 123" and "Unstoppable."

Box Office

"The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3": $150.2 million

"Unstoppable": $167.8 million

2010/2011: "The Fighter" and "Warrior" are both about brothers fighting in tournaments.

Box Office

"The Fighter": $129.2 million

"Warrior": $23 million

2011: Both "Friends With Benefits" and "No Strings Attached" explored sexual relationships between friends.

Box Office

"Friends with Benefits": $149.5 million

"No Strings Attached": $147.8 million

2012: Last year two versions of the same princess tale came out, "Snow White and the Huntsman" and "Mirror, Mirror."

Box Office

"Snow White and the Huntsman": $396.6 million

"Mirror, Mirror": $166.2 million

2012/2013: "A Hijacking" and "Captain Phillips" will both portray the 2009 hijacking of a cargo ship by Somali pirates.

Box Office:

 "A Hijacking": $60,180

Out right now is Channing Tatum's "White House Down" three months after similar movie "Olympus Has Fallen."

Box Office Opening Weekends:

 "Olympus Has Fallen": $30.4 million

"White House Down": $24.9 million

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com

The Lone Ranger (2013)

Native American warrior Tonto recounts the untold tales that transformed John Reid, a man of the law, into a legend of justice.

Director: Gore Verbinski

Screenplay: Justin Haythe, Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio

Stars: Johnny Depp, Armie Hammer, William Fichtner

Tagline: Never Take Off the Mask

Plot: An American Indian spirit warrior, Tonto (Depp), recounts the untold tales that transformed John Reid (Hammer), a man of the law, into a legend of justice. The two unlikely heroes must learn to work together and fight against greed and corruption.

Budget: $250,000,000 (estimated)

Reviews

Los Angeles Times: Not even Johnny Depp can rescue 'The Lone Ranger'  -  2.5/5

Screenrant: The final Lone Ranger movie experience misses the bar  -  2/5

IGN: Intermittently entertaining yet frustrating and disappointing  -  2/5

The Associated Press: For 2 ½ hours, … Lone Ranger inflates, subverts and distorts the conventions of the Western until, in an interminable climax, the big-budget spectacle finally, exhaustingly collapses in a scrap heap of train wreckage  -  2/5

Newsday: It’s a rollicking action-adventure with locomotives, rooftop shootouts and a bright-white Silver who has the powers of Pegasus.  -  2.5/5

NPR: The Lone Ranger combines Depp's shallow, liberal seriousness with Pirates of the Caribbeanslapstick spectacle, and the upshot is horrible. It's like Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee,adapted into a Disney theme park ride.  -  2/5

Firstshowing: Verbinski's 'Lone Ranger' is an Obvious, Pointless Blockbuster  -  1.5/5

Huffingtonpost: At times loving homage, at times bold reinvention, and at times winking parody, it's nonetheless an altogether enjoyable summer entertainment that manages, in its own way, to hearken back to those thrilling days of yesteryear  -  3/5

MovieMoReview Rating of The Lone Ranger  -  2.5/5