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American Ninja: The Confrontation, a review by Jon

American Ninja: The Confrontation **
2 out of 5

Joe and Curtis are assigned to an island where the local Marines are being kidnapped and there had been a rumour of Ninja involvement.


The first movie had a cool idea and got by on enthusiasm, if not talent. This is so bad it's hilarious. Steve James is really struggling now to look like he belongs in this rubbish and still gets the best lines. Michael Dudikoff is doing his thing and looks the part. The choreography was never fantastic, but aside from one or two moments, feels laboured. The enemy Ninjas are now little more than sparring partners in funny pajamas. I think the notion of what a Ninja actually is has been forgotten. Still, Dudikoff has some skills and the fights are always fun.

In a franchise (snigger) like this, you expect things to get repeated. So it's still a high class business man as the villain, trying to persuade others to buy into his diabolical scheme (genetically modified Ninja this time. Why? How do I know? It's just a great idea, so why not use it! ), while using a tamed Ninja master and his army for security. The last act is verbatim from the first film: Joe goes in alone, while Curtis gets tooled up, shouts his catchphrase ("Let's kick some ass!") and him and the marines ride in. James is always worth watching with his kiss-off lines to all the Ninjas.

But what makes this film very funny is the amount of little things that get repeated, even beyond the plot; they have a comedy sidekick called Charlie, who's different to the first Charlie! And their captain is nicknamed "Wild Bill", while in the first film he was Hickock! Brilliant. The only difference here is the guy who plays the Captain is the worst actor I have ever seen. Still has a by-the-book sergeant helping or hindering him, just like the first film.

It's just lazier overall, but funnier for it. For instance, you can see Dudikoff's stunt double as much as you can see Dudikoff! He's even used in an office scene!  I've tried to find it on YouTube, but no dice so far.

(From Jon's Random Reviews on August 8th, 2009)

How Green was My Valley, a review by Rich

Over the valleys with my penulltimate film, on course to complete the marathon  



Title: How Green Was My Valley

Runtime:114
Certificate:PG
Year:1941
Genres:Drama, Romance

Plot:Winner of five Academy Awards, this inspiring, yet heart-breaking "Hollywood milestone" (Halliwell's Film Guide) from producer Darryl F. Zanuck and director John Ford is "a perfection of screen art" and "one of the finest" pictures ever made (Variety).
Sixty-year-old Huw Morgan looks back on his life as a boy (RODDY McDOWALL) in a small Welsh mining town. His reminiscences reveal the disintegration of the closely know Morgans, and his devoted parents (DONALD CRISP, SARA ALLGOOD), while capturing the sentiments and issues of their time.
MAUREEN O'HARA and WALTER PIDGEON co-star in this acclaimed screen classic, the story of one family's dreams, struggles and triumphs.
My Review:
The disappearance of childhood innocence, life in a small town, humour, sadness, despair, joy, Ford manages to give you everything in this film. The black and white filming was a masterstroke, cleverly portraying the typically drab Welsh mining villages of the time. Accents are appalling, and the film has dated somewhat now, but certainly worth a watch purely for cinematic historical reasons. Remember - this beat Citizen Kane for the Oscar!


(From Around the World in 80 DVD's on March 18th, 2008)

Pete's Pilots, a review by addicted2dvd

The Incredible Hulk


The Incredible Hulk (Pilot)
In this thrilling two- hour movie, Dr. David Banner inadvertantly exposes himself to a high amount of gamma radiation and is horrified to discover that in moments of frustration and anger he is transformed into the incredibly powerful Hulk. Susan Sullivan guest stars.

My Thoughts:
This was always one of my favorite shows at the time it originally aired. I still enjoy it very much. I like this origin story they made... even if it don't stay accurate to the comics.  At this point I have the first 2 seasons as well as all the TV movies in my collection. But I do hope to get the final 3 seasons eventually.

My Rating:

(From Pete's Pilots on February 10th, 2010)