Two reviews! Gangster Squad and Cronos

Gangster Squad:

Story:

A group of cops is assembled to wage war on Mickey Cohen, a mobster from Chicago hellbent on taking over Los Angeles.

Reviews:

It certainly isn't an amazing cop vs. gangster movie, but Gangster Squad does a good job regardless. Some underwhelming performances and sloppy editing prevented Gangster Squad from being awesome.

What I liked the most:

1. The humour.

Whether it's not-so-subtle moments of racism, alcohol, or other topics, there's usually a moment in Gangster Squad where there are bits of humour to balance out the bits of violence.

2. The violence.

While not quite on the same level as a Tarantino movie, there is still a lot of violence, most of which is very well done. A lot of movies just use bland, generic violence, while Gangster Squad managed to make the violence a part of the movie.

3. The story.

While Gangster Squad is slightly based on a true story, it takes a lot of creative liberties from that story and ends up making a movie that is true to character and unique from the source material.

What I liked the least:

1. Emma Stone's lack of performance, and Sean Penn's overdone performance.

Emma Stone's hot, I think anyone can agree that she is hot, but just being hot isn't enough to do a good job in portraying a character in a movie. Her lack of emotions throughout the film don't really help her any; Yes, we get that she is sad in that scene, or afraid in that other scene, but we don't see it.

Sean Penn on the other hand, does perhaps too much for his role. He gets the mobster part down perfectly, but he is too evil sometimes.

2. The editing ruins the pacing for the plot.

Rapid scene switches can sometimes be used to good effect, but for Gangster Squad, that isn't the case. You'll be watching a violent scene and then all of a sudden SWITCH peaceful moment. No gradual transition or anything. As such, the pacing alternates from slow to fast on a bipolar rate.

Who I recommend Gangster Squad to:

Anyone who likes Mafia films. This is a good movie, and despite its flaws was overall entertaining to watch.

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Cronos:

Story:

An ancient device that gives immortality to its owner is found, creating a trail of destruction.

Review:

Leave it to Guillermo Del Toro to deliver an amazing movie like he always does. Cronos was an excellent film that is creepy, suspenseful, and emotional.

What I liked:

1. Everything.

From the story, to the creepily amazing performance by Ron Perlman (known to most of us as Hellboy), to countless other moments in Cronos, to the soundtrack, everything is brilliant.

What I liked the least:

1. Nothing.

Everything was well done. I can't honestly think of anything that I disliked or liked the least.

Who I recommend Cronos to:

To people who like pushing their minds a bit when watching a movie. Cronos is a thinking person's movie. It's an old movie, but it's an excellent movie all the same.