Terminator 4 / Transformers 2? Eat your heart out!

Rating: 10/10 (25 September 2009)

Ace movie – loved every second of it! Influences are: Doom, Half-Life, Robocop, Aliens etc! I honestly went into this movie TOTALLY cold. Glad I didn't read Total Film review (just read it now and it is spoiler city). The trailer (which I did see) really marketed the film differently. It didn't give anything away which was great. The comedy vibe in the first 15-20 minutes really threw me – but I was laughing loads. The main actor was GREAT. He reminded me very much of a South African Bruce Campbell (replace chainsaw arm with alien arm). Also, the humour was very reminiscent of that South African comedy movie Gods Must Be Crazy. Well impressed with how he flicked from geeky patronising comedic character to Daniel Craig style action man. I laughed out loud in loads of bits. Didn't expect it to get so touching. Loved the Alien that helped him and was really worried he was gonna get killed. Honestly didn't have a clue how the film was going to progress from one scene to the next. Couldn't help thinking how much this film totally blitzes recent robot/alien movies I've seen like Terminator 4 and Transformers 2. They're so bad compared to this.
**spoiler**
The tone of the film really switched from uncomfortable comedy to disturbing/violence when they were experimenting on him with his Alien hand, and got him to shoot the Prawn. And then were gonna split open his chest. I wanted to look away there, but was so glad when he fought back and I realised we were in for a Doug Quaid/Half Life esquire breakout from the Lab.
The Alien weaponry at the end scenes were fantastic. Loved the Robocop II esquire suit that froze all the bullets shot at it, and then fired them back at people. And the way people got splatted by the weapons like a frag in a deathmatch. That captain grunt looked just like Michael Ironside. Blows away Starship Troopers to, don't it?
**spoiler finished**
Definitely one I'll be buying on DVD.