The Final (2010)

Number Rolled: 31

Movie Name/Year: The Final (2010)

Genre: Independent

Length: 92 minutes

Rating: R

Director: Joey Stewart

Writer: Jason Kabolati

Actors: Marc Donato, Jascha Washington, Whitney Hoy, Justin Arnold, Lindsay Seidel, Julin, Laura Ashley Samuels, Travis Tedford, Eric Isenhower, Vincent Silochan, Preston Flagg, Hunter Garner, Ryan Hayden, Mark Nutter, Daniel Ross Owens, Matthew Posey, Adam Woods, J.C. Schuster, Brittany Grimes, Erin Howell, Erica Holbrook, Yana Kolmakova, Kenzie McDade, Matthew Brown, Jeremy Lee Harris, Will Schutze

Dane and his friends have been relentlessly bullied at school and, in some cases, at home. As they come to their wits end, they decide to kidnap their bullies and make them pay for everything they’ve done.

I thought this was an amazing film. Upon browsing the reviews for it, though, I found that a lot of people really disliked “The Final.” Common issues were that it was very “Columbine” like, that there wasn’t nearly enough blood and gore and that the message is dated. These reviews just serve to remind me why I think the majority of critics are idiots. The only thing this movie had in common with the Columbine tragedy is that bullied kids became suicidal. NOTHING else about this is “Columbine.” Aside from that, why should it matter if it was? This kind of thing DOES happen. In fact, this movie was loosely based on events that occurred in real life. As for the blood and gore, I’m glad there wasn’t more. Don’t get me wrong, I love bloody movies and torture porn, but the amount of gore in this movie made sense. The characters weren’t hardcore jaded serial killers, they were beaten down kids who snapped. Why does gore need to be a factor, anyway? The psychological horror involved in this film makes up for nearly every flaw I could have pointed out. As for the message being dated… so many arguments come to mind that it’s almost hard to choose which to use. Is it a message that’s been explored before? Sure. In fact, it’s been explored a lot, but it’s not overdone and it still applies. As long as there is a single person who’s decided not to be the same as everyone else, there will be bullies to pick on her and, as long as there are bullies, this message will be applicable. The message in a nutshell? Don’t be a dick.

I had some issue with the acting of the bullies, but that was really my only problem with “The Final.” I’m going to heavily recommend this movie to some of my other friends who’ve been bullied. It’s oddly satisfying.

Netflix’s Prediction for Me – 3.9/5

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 13%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 32%

Trust-the-Dice Score – 4.5/5

Movie Trailer: 

40 Days and Nights (2012)

Number Rolled: 96

Movie Name/Year: 40 Days and Nights (2012)

Genre: Action and Adventure

Length: 86 minutes

Rating: NR

Director: Peter Geiger

Writer: H. Perry Horton

Actors: Alex Carter, Monica Keena, Alex Arleo, Alex Ball, Victoria Barabas, Ty Banett, Adam Burch, Hector Luis Bustamante, Christianna Carmine, Marcus Choi, Emily Davenport, Evan Dumouchel, Susannah Hart Jones, Scott Hoxby, Kevin Jackson, Jonah Keal, Hina Khan, Jon Kondelik, Dominic Ledesma, Mitch Lerner, Kaiwi Lyman, Kimberly McConnel, Emilio Palame, Rich Paul, Andrew Pirozzi, Emily Sandifer, Aurelia Scheppers

As an apocalyptic storm brews, beginning to cover the entire world in water, the military works to create operational arks to try to save humankind.

Normally my synopsis of a movie is a little longer than one line, but not for this one. Although Horton tried to write in some personal drama and attempted to make the viewer feel empathy for some of the characters, it was an enormous failure. So many of the people the story concentrated on were there just show how deadly the storm was; so when people started being introduced with storyline, I found myself not caring.

The acting was weak and the characters being portrayed were even weaker. In an apocalyptic storyline, there’s always room for big personalities and it allows us to delve into human psychology as people are confronted with imminent demise. That’s a chance the writer simply missed in this movie. For the majority of the film, we’re confronted with technical jargon and the ability to watch people do their jobs without an issue. The few times there was any real storyline to sink our teeth into, the camera concentrated on the wrong people and we were left with no first hand information. It actually became annoying.

In my opinion, if you’re looking for this kind of film, you’re better off risking “Noah,” the new movie coming in March by director Darren Aronofsky and starring Russell Crowe, Emma Watson and Logan Lerman. That, too, is about an ark and 40 days of rain. I’m betting it’ll be leaps and bounds better than this nonsense.

Netflix’s Prediction for Me – 1.5/5

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – None

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – None

Trust-the-Dice Score – 1.5/5

The Random Rating: PG-13 for moderate action

Movie Trailer: 

Lovestruck: The Musical (2013)

Number Rolled: 60

Movie Name/Year: Lovestruck: The Musical (2013)

Genre: Romance

Length: 85 minutes

Rating: TV-14

Director: Sanaa Hamri

Writer: Jaylynn Bailey, Terry Rossio

Actors: Jane Seymour, Sara Paxton, Chelsea Kane, Drew Seeley, Alexander DiPersia, Adrienne Bailon, Tom Wopat, Sarab Kamoo, Mark Tallman, Zak Resnick, Kyle Durant

Mirabella is getting married to an Italian playboy. Her mother, Harper, is furious when she drops out of the Broadway musical she was supposed to be in. To try and prove to Mirabella that her fiancé is never going to change, Harper travels to Italy to break up the wedding. En route, she finds a magical tonic that makes her plan easier to put in motion.

This movie was relatively unbearable. It was like a long, horrible episode of “Glee” with a dash of “17 Again” thrown in. I admit, I like “Glee” and I thought “17 Again” was amusing enough, but when you put them together you get one gigantic waste of time.

To be honest, I love musicals. I’ve seen “West Side Story” about a hundred times and I have “Gypsy” (with Bette Midler) practically memorized. This was not a musical. The title claims it was one, but it’s a big, fat lie. Real musicals have lyrical, original music. The music in those movies have a huge effect on the storyline, they become melodies that instantly evoke emotions in people. “Lovestruck: The Musical” utilizes current pop music that doesn’t so much elevate the story as it seems like tiny intermissions forced into it.

This movie couldn’t have been worse if they tried. Maybe it was a tax write-off.

Netflix’s Prediction for Me – 2.7/5

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – None

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – None

Trust-the-Dice Score – 1/5

Movie Trailer: