Prometheus

Prometheus (2012)
Starring: Noomi Rapace, Logan Marshall-Greene, and Michael Fassbender
Directed by: Ridley Scott
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Grade: A++

I have been excited for this movie for a long time (and for obvious reason...it's a prequel to Alien and from the same director...duh). A team of scientists, led by Elizabeth Shaw (Rapace) and Charlie Holloway (Marshall-Greene), travels through the universe on the spaceship "Prometheus". This voyage is to investigate a suspicious alien life form that has left what the scientists think are messages for future humans to come find them. The team of scientists becomes stranded on this alien world, where it becomes clear that this world was just a military base instead of the alien's main planet. As they struggle to survive, it becomes clear that the horrors they experience are not just a threat to themselves but to all of mankind. Noomi Rapace is relatively new to American movies and she is really great in this one, reminiscent of Sigourney Weaver in the original Alien movies. Logan Marshall-Greene is also great as her ill-fated scientist boyfriend. The real star of the whole movie is, of course, Michael Fassbender, who stars as the mysterious android with dark ulterior motives named David. Prometheus also stars Charlize Theron as the evil leader of the expedition and Guy Pearce as the elder man that is in charge of the company that funded the mission.

Inglourious Basterds

Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Starring: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, and Christoph Waltz
Directed and Written by: Quentin Tarantino
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Grade: A

I love World War II movies. While this one wasn't a normal World War Ii movie (by any means), it was still good. Tarantino definitely isn't focused on being historically accurate. He is, however, focused on making a good movie. And he does that here. I didn't like it as much as Reservoir Dogs, this one was good, too. The movie starts out in Nazi occupied France, where young Jewish refugee Shosanna Dreyfus (Melanie Laurent) witnesses the slaughter of her family by Colonel Hans Landa (Waltz). Narrowly escaping with her life, she plots her revenge several years later when German war hero Fredrick Zoller (Daniel Bruhl) takes a rapid interest in her and arranges an illustrious movie premiere at the theater she now runs. With the promise of every major Nazi officer in attendance, the event catches the attention of the "Basterds", a group of Jewish-American guerilla soldiers led by the ruthless Lt. Aldo Raine (Pitt). As the relentless executioners advance and the conspiring young girl's plans are set in motion, their paths will cross for a fateful evening that will shake the very annals of history. Also stars Michael Fassbender as a German speaking British officer sent in to help a double agent (Kruger).

X-Men: First Class

X-Men: First Class (2011)
Starring: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, and Jennifer Lawrence
Directed by: Matthew Vaughn
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Grade: A++

I love all of the X-Men movies. It's one of my favorite trilogies of all time. This is the best one of all. Not only that, it's the best movie I've seen this year (tied with Battle: LA and Super 8). Charles Xavier (McAvoy), before he becomes Professor X, is a normal guy on the outside, but what no one sees is that he's a mutant. He can not only read other people's minds but can see what has happened to them. Raven (Lawrence), before she was Mystique, was Charles' childhood friend. They meet Erik Lehnsherr (Fassbender), before he becomes Magneto. A friendship begins to form between Charles and Erik as they search for other mutants using a device called Cerebro invented by Hank McCoy (played by Nicholas Hoult), who will later become Beast. They find Angel (played by Zoe Kravitz), Darwin (played by Edi Gathegi), Banshee (played by Caleb Jones), and, my favorite, Havok (played by Lucas Till). Together, they set out to stop Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon), who is trying to start WWIII. Kevin Bacon plays a good bad guy, as does January Jones (she's awesome.) Michael Fassbender is great. Jennifer Lawrence is wonderful, as usual. James McAvoy is the scene stealer in this movie, even outdoing Patrick Stuart.