The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

2002/PG-13/223 Min.

OVERALL 9.1

STORY/SCREENPLAY 9.1 

ACTING 9.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5
EDITING 9.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.0
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.5
SOUND 9.5 
MUSIC 9.5

VIOLENCE 7.0
LANGUAGE 0.0 
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.5

MORALS 8.0 
POWER 9.0 

CREATIVITY 8.5

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #3

ABEL AWARDS

Mini-review:

More action, but never less drama, carries the second in the trilogy to a new epic height that fills in the gap and sets up for the epic ending to the trilogy.

Director: 
Peter Jackson

Starring: 
Elijah Wood
Ian McKellen
Sean Astin
Viggo Mortensen
Liv Tyler
Cate Blanchett
Orlando Bloom
John Rhys-Davies
Andy Serkis
Billy Boyd
Dominic Monaghan

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

2001/PG-13/208 Min.

OVERALL 9.1

STORY/SCREENPLAY 9.1 

ACTING 9.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5
EDITING 9.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.0
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.5
SOUND 9.5 
MUSIC 9.5

VIOLENCE 7.0
LANGUAGE 0.0 
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.5

MORALS 8.0 
POWER 8.5 

CREATIVITY 8.5

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #2

ABEL AWARDS

Mini-review:

The first in perhaps the greatest film trilogy of all time, this film carries depth and emotion throughout its epic and long but never boring plot, and it sticks quite close to its source material.

Director: 
Peter Jackson

Starring: 
Elijah Wood
Ian McKellen
Sean Astin
Viggo Mortensen
Liv Tyler
Cate Blanchett
Orlando Bloom
John Rhys-Davies
Andy Serkis
Billy Boyd
Dominic Monaghan
Ian Holm

Batman Begins (2005)

2005/PG-13/140 Min.

OVERALL 8.9

STORY/SCREENPLAY 8.9 

ACTING 9.5
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5 
EDITING 9.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.0
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.0
SOUND 9.5 
MUSIC 9.5

VIOLENCE 6.5
LANGUAGE 1.0
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.5

MORALS 7.5
POWER 8.0
CREATIVITY 8.5

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #7

ABEL AWARDS 

Mini-review:

A great film with fantastic performances and a Batman that is more relate-able, and depth that was really lacking in the 4 films that came throughout the 90s. Batman Begins is an excellent film that captures the fear and emotional depth of Batman.

Director: 
Christopher Nolan

Starring: 
Christian Bale 
Liam Neeson
Michael Caine
Katie Holmes
Gary Oldman
Morgan Freeman 
Cillian Murphy
Tom Wilkinson
Ken Wantanabe

Lincoln (2012)

2012/PG-13/150 Min.

OVERALL 8.4

STORY/SCREENPLAY 8.4 

ACTING 9.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5 
EDITING 9.0
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 8.5
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.2
SOUND 9.0 
MUSIC 9.0

VIOLENCE 5.0
LANGUAGE 2.0
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.5

MORALS 7.5
POWER 8.5
CREATIVITY 8.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #20

ABEL AWARDS 4 wins / 9 Nominations

Mini-review:

An excellent portrayal of Lincoln, with incredible performances and beautiful cinematography and all around execution. Another great film by Steven Spielberg, showing us the man who is Abraham Lincoln, and not just his good side, but his many shortfalls and also his wisdom. This is a film that gives you a lot to think about.

Director: 
Steven Spielberg (Winner - Best Director)

Starring: 
Daniel Day-Lewis (Winner  - Best Lead Actor)
Tommy Lee Jones (Nominee - Best Supporting Actor)
Jared Harris
Sally Field (Nominee - Best Supporting Actress)
James Spader 
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
David Strathairn
Adam Driver
Lee Pace

Les Miserables (2012)

2012/PG-13/157 Min.

OVERALL 8.6

STORY/SCREENPLAY 8.7 

ACTING 9.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5 
EDITING 8.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.0
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.5
SOUND 9.0 
MUSIC 9.5

VIOLENCE 4.5
LANGUAGE 1.0
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 2.5

MORALS 8.0
POWER 8.5
CREATIVITY 8.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #10

ABEL AWARDS 4 wins / 7 Nominations

Mini-review:

A beautiful and emotional journey that is unparalleled in cinema these days, Les Miserables is not just a movie, or simply a musical, it is a portrayal of life and love and the consequences of the decisions we make. It shines with the fact that we are not defined by our circumstances, but defined by our choices to have faith and hope, and to love. We are the wretched miserable ones, and this film does an incredible job of drawing you in and portraying the deep emotions of life.

Director: 
Tom Hooper (Honorable Mention - Best Director)

Starring: 
Hugh Jackman (Nominee - Best Lead Actor)
Russell Crowe (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actor)
Amanda Seyfried
Eddie Redmayne (Winner - Best Supporting Actor)
Anne Hathaway (Winner - Best Supporting Actress)
Sacha Baron Cohen
Helena Bonham Carter (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actress)
Samantha Barks (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actress)
Daniel Huttlestone

12 Years a Slave (2013)

2013/R/134 Min.

OVERALL 8.2

STORY/SCREENPLAY 8.5

ACTING 9.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5
EDITING 9.0
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 8.5 
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.0 
SOUND 9.0 

MUSIC 9.0

VIOLENCE 8.5 
LANGUAGE 1.5 

SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 6.0 

MORALS 7.5 
POWER 8.5 

CREATIVITY 7.5

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #32

ABEL AWARDS 5 wins / 7 nominations

Mini-review:

12 Years a Slave is a hard and honest depiction at the life of a free man who is sold into slavery, and it comes as an emotional and hopeful journey. A masterful work of filmmaking and a great story.

Director: 
Steve McQueen (Nominee - Best Director)

Starring:

Chiwetel Ejiofor (Nominee - Best Lead Actor)
Michael Fassbender (Winner - Best Supporting Actor)
Lupita Nyong'o (Winner - Best Supporting Actress)
Benedict Cumberbatch
Brad Pitt
Paul Giamatti

Gravity (2013)

2013/PG-13/114 Min.

OVERALL 8.2

STORY/SCREENPLAY 8.0

ACTING 8.5
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5
EDITING 9.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.5 
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.3 
SOUND 9.5 

MUSIC 8.5

VIOLENCE 6.0 
LANGUAGE 2.0 

SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.0 

MORALS 7.0 
POWER 8.0 

CREATIVITY 9.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #38

ABEL AWARDS 6 wins / 7 nominations

Mini-review:

Beautiful, breathtaking, and surprisingly heartfelt, Gravity is a masterful piece of filmmaking with sleek direction and awe-inspiring visual effects and cinematography.

Director: 
Alfonso Cuaron (Winner - Best Director)

Starring:

Sandra Bullock (Winner - Best Lead Actress)
George Clooney

The Tree of Life (2011)

2011/PG-13/139 Min.

OVERALL 8.4

STORY/SCREENPLAY 8.2 

ACTING 9.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.0 
EDITING 8.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.0
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 8.5
SOUND 8.5 
MUSIC 8.5

VIOLENCE 3.0
LANGUAGE 0.5
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 1.0

MORALS 8.0
POWER 8.5
CREATIVITY 9.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #18

ABEL AWARDS BEST FILM - 8 wins / 4 Nominations

Mini-review:

An emotional and spiritual journey that doesn't shy away from the difficult questions about life and love. It is a slow film, so it's not for the average moviegoer. It's more than just entertainment, it's life-challenging and purpose-driven art.

Director: 
Terrence Malick (Nominee - Best Director)

Starring: 
Jessica Chastain (Nominee - Best Lead Actress)
Brad Pitt (Winner - Best Supporting Actor)
Hunter McCracken
Laramie Eppler
Tye Sheridan
Sean Penn

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

2012/PG-13/164 Min.

OVERALL 9.0

STORY/SCREENPLAY 9.1 

ACTING 9.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5 
EDITING 9.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.5
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.3
SOUND 9.5 
MUSIC 9.0

VIOLENCE 7.0
LANGUAGE 1.5
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 1.0

MORALS 7.5
POWER 9.0
CREATIVITY 8.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #6

ABEL AWARDS BEST FILM - 4 wins / 4 Nominations

Mini-review:

An epic conclusion to the Batman trilogy, and while a little long and slow in the beginning, more than makes up for it in the end with its finale. The true character of Bruce Wayne is finally fleshed out, and we finally get to see the Batman that is truly a hero.

Director: 
Christopher Nolan (Nominee - Best Director)

Starring: 
Christian Bale (Honorable Mention - Best Lead Actor)
Gary Oldman (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actor)
Morgan Freeman
Michael Caine (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actor)
Tom Hardy
Anne Hathaway
Marion Cotillard
Joseph Gordon- Levitt

The Dark Knight (2008)

2008/PG-13/152 Min.

OVERALL 9.0

STORY/SCREENPLAY 9.2 

ACTING 9.5
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5 
EDITING 9.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.0
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.2
SOUND 9.5 
MUSIC 9.5

VIOLENCE 7.0
LANGUAGE 1.5
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.5

MORALS 7.5
POWER 8.5
CREATIVITY 9.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #5

ABEL AWARDS BEST FILM - 11 wins / 6 Nominations

Mini-review:

A fantastic film that amazes with its moral dilemmas, excellent performances, and intricate plot. The Dark Knight is an incredible film masterpiece. Plus, it's Batman.

Director: 
Christopher Nolan (Winner - Best Director)

Starring: 
Christian Bale (Honorable Mention - Best Lead Actor)
Heath Ledger (Winner - Best Supporting Actor)
Maggie Gyllenhaal
Gary Oldman (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actor)
Morgan Freeman (Nominee - Best Supporting Actor)
Michael Caine (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actor)
Aaron Eckhart

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)

2013/PG/114 Min.

OVERALL 8.3

STORY/SCREENPLAY 8.2

ACTING 8.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.0
EDITING 9.0
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.0 
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 8.7 
SOUND 8.5 

MUSIC 9.0

VIOLENCE 4.0 
LANGUAGE 1.0 

SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.5 

MORALS 7.5 
POWER 8.0 

CREATIVITY 9.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #23

ABEL AWARDS BEST FILM - 3 wins / 5 nominations

Mini-review:

Inspirational, quirky, heartfelt and filled with some great awkward humor, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a wonderful, dazzling, and adventurous spectacle that touches the heart of life and gives ambition to live life to the fullest wherever you are.

Director: 
Ben Stiller

Starring: 
Ben Stiller
Kristen Wiig
Sean Penn
Adam Scott
Patton Oswalt

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

2003/PG-13/251 Min.

OVERALL 9.1

STORY/SCREENPLAY 9.3

ACTING 9.0
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5
EDITING 9.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.0
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.5
SOUND 9.5
MUSIC 9.5

VIOLENCE 7.0
LANGUAGE 0.0
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.5

MORALS 8.0
POWER 9.0 

CREATIVITY 8.5

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #1

ABEL AWARDS

Mini-review:

The epic conclusion to The Lord of the Rings is a visually beautiful film filled with so many characters, all of whom the story never forgets, and leaves you with an emotional ending to this epic journey, and sails away into the west.

Director: 
Peter Jackson

Starring: 
Elijah Wood
Ian McKellen
Sean Astin
Viggo Mortensen
Liv Tyler
Cate Blanchett
Orlando Bloom
John Rhys-Davies
Andy Serkis
Billy Boyd
Dominic Monaghan

The Prestige (2006)

2006/PG-13/130 Min.

OVERALL 9.1

STORY/SCREENPLAY 9.2

ACTING 9.5
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5
EDITING 9.0
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 8.5
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.2
SOUND 9.5
MUSIC 8.0

VIOLENCE 5.0
LANGUAGE 1.0
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 1.0

MORALS 7.5
POWER 8.5
CREATIVITY 9.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #4

ABEL AWARDS BEST FILM - 8 wins / 5 Nominations

Mini-review:

This film is a cinematic masterpiece, playing out its own premise by becoming the greatest magic trick that its characters are attempting to perform.

Director: 
Christopher Nolan (Winner - Best Director)

Starring: 
Hugh Jackman (Nominee - Best Lead Actor)
Christian Bale (Winner - Best Supporting Actor)
Michael Caine (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actor)
Scarlett Johannson (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actress)
Rebecca Hall (Winner - Best Supporting Actress)

Full Review:

“Are you watching closely?” This is the first line of a film called The Prestige by director/writer Christopher Nolan, and it is a film that will keep you guessing. The film is an excellent, original, and mysterious drama that is one of the best in its genre. The film has a screenplay that is well written and will keep you guessing, acting that is superb, and is a very well-done period piece set in 19th century London. As told in the film, every great magic trick consists of three parts or acts. The first part is called “The Pledge”. The magician shows some ordinary object and might ask someone to inspect it to see if it is indeed real, unaltered, and normal. But of course, it probably isn't. The second act is called “The Turn”. The magician takes the ordinary something and makes it do something extraordinary. But the audience would not clap yet, because making something disappear is not enough; the magician must bring it back. That is why every magic trick has a third act, the hardest part. The part called “The Prestige”.

The story is well put together and is a unique work based on the novel by Christopher Priest. Like other films by director/writer Christopher Nolan, such as Inception or The Dark Knight, it is a well-thought through and mind-twisting film. The story is about two magicians: Robert Angier, who is played by Hugh Jackman; and Alfred Borden, who is played by Christian Bale. At the beginning of the film they are both assistants to a magician named Milton, along with Angier’s wife Julia. When Julia drowns in an accident on stage, Angier blames Borden, who was partially at fault for tying a knot that Julia was supposed to get out of easily. Angier is obsessed with getting back at Borden, and they become bitter rivals, trying to get the better of the each other and perform the greatest trick.

The summary above is only a brief glimpse at the plot because overall the story is extremely complex. The screenplay to the film is excellently put together, as it is done with selective ordering, shifting back and forth in time for artistic purposes. It gives the film a strange quality that prevents its viewers from knowing exactly what is happening, but at the same time they know somehow the entire film is a trick. This style makes the film very intriguing and keeps the viewer thinking about where the film is at and how it got to that point. So many movies today are predictable and unoriginal, and this film is neither.

Now, some people might say that this complex ordering makes the film too confusing and too hard to follow. This may be true for the people who watch films solely for entertainment. But even then, this film is still very well done, and because of that it may still be enjoyable for many. It is best not to watch this film with the purpose to simply be entertained, as this is a very thought-provoking film, and it is not pure entertainment in any respect. A review on The Internet Movie Database (IMDb.com) said that people will enjoy the film if they are smart enough and not so “dumbed down” by most entertainment that you can stay steadily involved. The sad thing is that many people today are “dumbed down” by entertainment. Analyzing films for every aspect, and not just how much it entertained, is the only way to truly enjoy complex and thought-provoking films.

In addition to the complex plot of the film, The Prestige has excellent acting performances. Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, and Michael Caine are so believable that it makes one feel like they are watching a magic show they are putting on. Hugh Jackman plays well the role of the cold, angry, and obsessed magician Robert Angier who longs to avenge his wife’s death. Jackman’s performance takes off when he shows Angier’s turn from a fairly content assistant to an obsessed magician trying to pull off the greatest trick to get revenge at his rival. Hugh Jackman shows well his character’s extreme grudge against Alfred Borden, using that as his foundation fueling his cold obsession. This constantly comes into play, as at one point, we see Angier shoot Borden while Borden is trying to perform the infamous bullet catch trick. Hugh Jackman truly makes Angier’s obsessed character come to life. Richard Roeper of Ebert & Roeper[1] stated in a review, “Jackman and Bale give standout performances as rivals whose mutual obsession destroys all sense of perspective and ruins lives”.

On the other side, we have Christian Bale who excellently portrays the struggling magician Alfred Borden. Borden’s character is very strange as he seems noble one moment and conniving the next, a very difficult role to play. Borden struggles with Angier and they both continually attempt to sabotage each other’s magic shows. Borden hires a mysterious assistant named Fallon, and they work together to start their own show. When Borden performs a very successful trick he calls “The Transported Man”, Angier is obsessed with discovering Borden’s method and attempts to do the trick even better. On top of all this, we see Michael Caine’s character, the old magician named Cutter, who is caught in the middle of the battle between Angier and Borden. As the story progresses, Cutter must choose who he should ally himself with, and he struggles to find what to do, and Michael Caine plays his character to perfection. Though the film did not win any major awards for its acting, the performances deserve some respect as overall the characters are excellently portrayed and believable.

Another element where a film must excel to succeed is its quality, meaning its setting, cinematography, costumes, and other things similar to these aspects. Usually, period pieces are very hard to pull off because of the extensive costumes, sets, and props, but The Prestige captures the period of 19th century London into perspective quite well. If the film was in a modern setting, it would be less impressive since there is greater technology in the present day and less magicians like the ones of the 19th century. Setting it in the 19th century makes the illusions much more mind-boggling because of the lack of resources that they had in that era. The sets are also all amazing, especially the different stages and workshops the magicians work in. To go along with this, there are excellent period costumes, some very raggedy and worn down, and some very elaborate for the magicians. Finally, to top it all off, we also see some magic tricks actually performed by the actors, who were coached by Rick Jay, a sleight of hand expert who appears in the film as a magician.

Some objections to the film may be that there is some violence and language. The film is very intense and should not be recommended to young ones, and there are a few violent scenes. There is very little language for a PG-13 film, however, and the film is actually fairly clean. Some other arguments against the film might be about who the protagonist of the film is. Some also may wonder about the moral or message of the film, and may find the film depressing. There really is no clear protagonist of the film, as the major character, Angier, is not really a “good guy”. Usually the protagonist of a film has a change of heart for the better and becomes good in the end, or the character is simply always “the good guy”. Nevertheless, this is not the case with this film, as every character in the film seems either does not change or changes for the worse.

This is why the moral of the film is important. Though the film is a little depressing and has very little redemptive quality to it, the message of this film is clear if one looks closely. The point is to show how dangerous obsession can be and how pride and revenge will never get you what you want. A protagonist can be defined as the hero of a story, or the one you are “rooting” for to win in the end. The lead character, Angier, is not this man. In fact, many people may have different opinions as to who they root for. Some may think Borden is the protagonist, some may think even Cutter is that man, and some may end up not wanting anyone to win. But the main point is that Angier lets his obsession ruin him, and Borden lets his pride and want for fame get the best of him. This film shows the fallen nature of man and what he brings upon himself.

The Prestige is an original and well-done film that breaks through in an age where original works are few and far between. It excels with its extraordinary screenplay, excellent acting, and beautiful quality. This is a film that will make the viewer think hard and marvel at its complexity. The trick starts with “The Pledge” and twists with “The Turn”. The film is The Prestige; are you watching closely?

[1] Ebert & Roeper on RottenTomatoes.com

Inception (2010)

2010/PG-13/148 Min.

OVERALL 8.9

STORY/SCREENPLAY 8.9 

ACTING 8.5
CINEMATOGRAPHY 9.5
EDITING 9.5
VISUAL/SPECIAL FX 9.5
ART/COSTUMES/MAKEUP 9.0
SOUND 9.5 
MUSIC 9.5

VIOLENCE 6.0
LANGUAGE 1.0 
SEXUAL CONTENT/NUDITY 0.5

MORALS 7.5 
POWER 7.5 

CREATIVITY 9.0

MELCHIZEDEK’S RANKING  #8

ABEL AWARDS BEST FILM - 10 wins / 6 nominations

Mini-review:

An epic and mind bending drama/thriller that mixes so many elements masterfully to create an amazing "dream" movie.

Director: 
Christopher Nolan (Winner - Best Director)

Starring: 
Leonardo DiCaprio
Marion Cotillard
Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Honorable Mention - Best Supporting Actor)
Ken Wantanabe
Tom Hardy
Cillian Murphy (Nominee - Best Supporting Actor)
Ellen Page (Nominee - Best Supporting Actress)
Michael Caine

Full Review: 

The best film of the year so far by far. This film left me speechless after seeing it and I highly recommend it! The only problem I had with this film was Leonardo DiCaprio and there wasn't really a good moral to it. DiCaprio didn't do a bad job acting, but he wasn't great either. There were definitely some flaws in the story, but the film was very complicated and well thought out. With the help of Hans Zimmer's brilliant soundtrack and some awesome special effects, Christopher Nolan has done it again.

Welcome!

Welcome to Melchizedek's Movie Review Blog. I will be posting Ratings and Reviews on movies and keep you up to date on which new releases I'm excited for, etc.

Yours truly,

Melchizedek