3 stars even tho some decent acting & a good rap song ..
932610
mediocre in every sense of the word .. how the 5 star reviews got here IDK .. seems a bit "planted" as even though the characters were decent (acting) it just never took off .. the black kid rapping was decent ! there were other 'moments' but sheesh giv me some pace or plot .. it was just meandering and ... meh .
 3 stars here is generous .
 you might think differently but sheesh they'll put anything on film these days ..
 my .02
1281020
This film shows what happens when a Hollywood team gets just a bit too much credit for some of their productions... (they go on to show that their earlier work was perhaps a lucky strike).  I could definitely see Apatow's fingerprints on this, and it had the usual cast of characters for one of his films, but I'm really finding his stuff isn't as funny as some give it credit for.  Yes Knocked Up was entertaining (and grew on me over time really), but over time Apatow and friends keep going back to the same formula and format and unfortunately they seem to keep forgetting to include humor or other compelling reasons to keep watching.

Owen Wilson plays a homeless individual that gets hired as a bodyguard for a group of picked-on high school freshmen.  Unfortunately his skills as a bodyguard are pretty much non-existent.  The kids go along with his unusual methods as they assume he's trying to teach them how to take care of themselves, but in the end the inevitable big fight between the kids and the bully they needed defense against remains their destiny.

Wilson does ok with what he's asked to do here and over the course of the film he seems to grow into an almost responsible individual.  Unfortunately the film doesn't seem to grow in the same way and viewers are left wishing for something better.

Worth a rental at best, but borderline skip it material in my book. It was ok over all, but there were parts that drug along and just weren't that funny or even that entertaining to me.  I'm glad I didn't even come close to blind buying this. About 2.5 out of 5 for me at best, with several stretches that made it seem more like 2 or lower...
4284021
I think as a story it was not so bad. As a representation of a book, the other reviewers suggest it did a poor job. Perhaps trying to fit a book or two into a movie script is what makes for a disappointing movie.
The acting was pretty good. Aaliyah had a good cognizance of her body, and did a good job dancing through it all. Her diction was well done too, for a singer. Stuart Townsend seemed a little coquette-ish for my taste. He was trying to translate 'irresistible' and it turned into something cheesy. Also, portraying the singing rock star, he seemed oddly reserved. I think he was trying to not look ridiculous and tempering his body accordingly. If he'd watched some NIN or Korn videos or concerts he might have loosened his physical restraint during his performance a little. I mean, if he'd been singing he might have had to throw himself into it more.
The make up was quite good in most cases, especially for Akasha. The vampire design was pretty much oddly accentuated eye shadow, so not as great. The statuary could have been better.
Basically I was here for the music. Jonathan Davis' singing voice didn't quite match Townsend's speaking voice, but it would have been tricky to cast an actor to fit the way he sang.
1533632
I'm a Drew Barrymore fan. I think she does cute very well. I'm not so much a fan of Hugh Grant, but he can be funny sometimes (he was awesome in 'About a Boy'). But I watched this the other night and it was a pretty ..ok..movie for a RomCom. The begging with the 80's music video for his group named PoP was pretty hilarious (specially the heart attack scene). The rest of the movie, was...I don't know..decent I guess. It had some ok chuckles in it. The chemistry between the two was somewhat believable.

It really was your basic romantic comedy from A-Z.

I'm not really dissing the movie, cause it wasn't terrible. It just didn't really make me want to remember it once it was done.
280561
This is the sort of movie you could watch on a bus or a plane, or in a hotel room if you were desperate for something to watch. A good time filler and mildly entertaining, but not much else. The story idea is interesting enough but the movie itself doesn't really have staying power. 5 minutes after you've watched it you struggle to remember what the movie was all about. I must confess my main interest in seeing it was for the motorcycle chase, that didn't disappoint me, although the sound effects for the bike sounded a bit fake.
But don't get me wrong, I wasn't disappointed in the movie. But that's because I didn't really expect too much out of it to begin with. And neither should anybody else who wants to see this movie.
1722617
Movie had professor Renzo Gracie which makes it worth the watch. The plot is a beyond belief I need a movie that is at least believeable. The chief actor Jason Field needs more acting lessons. Maybe he has improved since this movie but in this one he was still an amateur? Anyway there were a few good parts in it but overall I wasn't impressed. It had the expected plot and ending and little believeable about it. I enjoyed seeing Renzo Gracie in it and the girl did a good job acting.
2111467
of course luda lyrically brings it but some of the beats are too generic and uninspiring. i like luda and he gets better lyrically and flow wise on every cd but to me the subject isn't even consistent. i thought it would be a girl rappin on every song but it aint. still a solid effort but comparing it to theatre of mind.... eeeeeeeeeeeehhhhhh nope!
1500782
For a 1990s movie, this was pretty good for its time.  An ex-military/special ops leader decides to infiltrate as a substitute teacher after his good female friend was beaten up by a local gang that resides in the school where she teaches in Miami.  The high school is in an at-risk neighborhood filled with violence and teenage pregnancy.  The school is operated by a black principal who was an ex-cop in the gang unit.  It turns out that the principal is in on the action with the local gang and is using the school as a front.  The ex-military guy and his team decides to take part in the action and make some money off of the gang by stealing their funds and merchandise to then buy supplies for the school.  This becomes a gang war in a sense between the KOD gang and the ex-military team.

The acting was good, but the fight scenes seem a bit slow and poorly choreographed.  The shoot em up scenes were okay.  Overall, it had a decent plot even though the movie was a bit long.  Mark Anthony is in this movie, but he didn't seem like a tough guy even though his role was supposed to be a tough gang leader.
1566673
This movie was fairly good but not exceptional. The story centers around three childhood friends that are reunited 25 years later when the daughter of one is murdered. Though Sean Penn has proved to be an outstanding actor in other roles, I didn't particularly like him as the father of the murdered girl and wasn't really moved by his performance.  Tim Robbins' acting was moving and I thought he was the best part of the movie. Kevin Bacon was also very good as the cop investigating the murder. The supporting cast added little to the movie and the actress that played Sean Penn's wife was irritating to say the least. Even when she wasn't speaking, she was irritating. For a movie to be exceptional, I think the audience has to care about the characters. Most of the characters in this movie aren't very likeable and seem to have few redeeming qualities.
4092710
some nice shots and effects .. could have been nudity but somewhat interesting .. im a fan of indo films and this one was decent
3534185
First of all Id like to say how nice it is to see a major DVD release that is offered in FULL SCREEN format as well as widescreen. It's nice to have the choice for those of us who prefer not to have the black bars present everytime we watch a DVD.
Now on to the movie itself. I WAS REALLY SHOCKED! When I saw previews for this movie, it made me curious, and also a bit uninterested at the same time. The previews didn't say ANYTHING about the plot or what the movie was about, basically all they said about the film was "hey Eminem made a movie! Go watch it because he's in it!". I hate hype like that. So I was worried this movie would be another stupid mainstream, hyped up movie that would ultimatley [be unacceptable]. But I was wrong!
The movie is roughly based around Eminem's own life; how he was poor, living in a trailor with a bad mother, and basically had a really bad life. The birght spot in his life? - Hip-hop. The character goes through a lot of drama with friends, and has to overcome both the oppression of others and his own hang ups in order to make it. Basically it's a movie about battle rapping and the hip-hop culture on the streets of detroit and how it impacted his life.
Many people won't understand the plot because they don't understand hip-hop and can't relate. But this is a pretty original story-line. It's almost like a sports movie... sort of like remember the titans only instead of football the sport is battle rap. For those who don't understand battle rap it may not make any sense or seem stupid. If you're a true fan of hip-hop you'll love this movie.
The battles are well-crafted and hilarious. I don't know who actually wrote all the rhymes but they are lyrically very nice. The acting too, is off the hook. Eminem does a really good job playin his character, and all the characters are likeable. All around this movie is well done and was a really nice surprise for me. The message of overcoming obsticales and finding your own niche in life is well woven into the story. If you hate eminem (and I know lots of parents or rap-haters do) you may come to respect him after watching the movie. I like to think little marshal has more in common with B Rabbit than he does his alter ego "slim shady".
Check it out before ya buy, and if it aint your thing, then you aint gonna like it (people who just watch MTV videos and have no REAL understanding of what hip hop really is), but I loved it, and I think many others are surprised that this movie was as good as it was.
1546078
It was really ok.  I liked it contrary to other reviews.  Also contrary to other reviews, Bruce Willis is NOT a cameo appearance, nor is John Cusack or Rain.....you know, the rockstar??? They all play pretty substantial roles in this movie. 50 cent was a cameo. At first I wasn't sure if I was going to believe Jason Patric could play the gun wielding daddy but it kinda worked for him.  I think people may have been expecting Bruce Willis to be the focus of the movie and that HE would be the gun wielding daddy and when that didn't happen, they dislike the movie. It works because Jason Patric is not an emotional character and very rarely to you see him in anything that elicits any type of emotion out of him. So for this movie, it really worked out for him.  Overall, I'd never heard of this movie so it obviously wasn't a blockbuster but for being offered on Amazon prime, its not a bad watch, really. Decent story, grabs your attention, keeps you entertained throughout, lots of shooting and people getting busted up.
2149031
It was worth watching, but just an average movie.
3199519
I recently rented this movie. I knew in advance this isn't that much of a good movie and it isnt. The storyline is alright and some of the humor. Big Show should really just stick to wrestling as he isn't really that good of an actor. If this was made by another movie company instead of WWE films and didn't star the 7'0 Big Show...this movie might've been really good...ok more then that. Yes some of acting is a tad bad..and some characters you just hate...for the wrong reason.

The movie did have some cool moments but a lot of bad. The storyline wasn't all that bad..even though it has been done before...way too many times.

Rent this if you like goofball movies, but skip if you want to see a good movie. In the end this movie is just ok.

Pros
-Had potental
-Some good funny moments
-Cool moments (the match against the bear)
-Interesting storyline

Cons
-Big Show's acting
-Some of the other actors
-Some characters are just bad
311914
I felt this was a decent action movie, which was all I was looking for when I rented it.  The plot is interesting and fairly unique, but the ending was kind of predictable.  There were some holes in the plot, but part of watching a movie is suspending your beliefs and just enjoying the show.

The acting was good and I felt it was well cast.  I would recommend this movie to action/thriller movie lovers who are looking to be casually entertained - not those looking to be blown away or amazed by "genre defining film."
4762959
This movie, I must admit, didn't totally wow me, though it did have a pretty original idea behind it.  The acting was decent, though I wouldn't call it top notch.  I won't say much about the movie, because there's a description on the movie's page already, plus I wouldn't want to spoil anything further either.  I liked the movie okay, though I don't think I'd own it.  I'd say it's worth at least a watch though.  Check it out.
4741473
The movie itself isn't bad, but the acting could have used some work. Paul was always good at memorizing his lines in WWE but wasn't the best at acting them out. I always felt Dustin Rhodes is WWE's best actor, but regardless, he did ok. Ariel Winters did a good job aswell. The start of the film is a tad confusing, because we don't know why he was in jail and how he got there, but that is explained (sort of) in the end.

Is it a family friendly movie? Well, that depends on what family you are showing it too. There is a little bit of violence and lots of guns. Kids with deadly weapon, kids driving a bus.....is it really possible to find the location of someones Iphone? That's not stalkerish at all is it? ha

I would still recommend the film, its worth viewing atleast once.