Sabtu, 21 April 2012

Battleship

Battleship is a 2012 American science fiction naval war film based on the children's game. The film was directed by Peter Berg and released by Universal Pictures. The film stars Taylor Kitsch, Alexander Skarsgård, Brooklyn Decker, Rihanna, and Liam Neeson. The film was originally planned to be released in 2011, but was rescheduled to April 11, 2012 in the United Kingdom and May 18, 2012 in the United States.The film's world premiere was in Tokyo, Japan on April 3, 2012. Plot In 2005, NASA discovers an extrasolar planet with conditions similar to Earth. On the chance that it contains intelligent life, NASA transmits a powerful signal from a communications array based in Hawaii. Around the same time, the talented but undisciplined slacker Alex Hopper attempts to impress a woman by getting her a chicken burrito; the result of which sees Alex break into a convenience store and be tasered by the police. Stone Hopper, a naval officer, attempts to give his younger brother some direction by forcing him to join the United States Navy. By 2012, Alex is a lieutenant and the Tactical Action Officer aboard the destroyer USS John Paul Jones, while Stone is commanding officer of USS Sampson. Alex is also in a committed relationship with Samantha Shane (the woman he tried to impress seven years prior), and wants to marry her, but is afraid of asking her father, Pacific Fleet commanding officer Vice Admiral Shane, for permission. During the opening ceremony for the RIMPAC multinational naval exercise, Alex gets into a brawl with Captain Nagata, commanding officer of the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force destroyer JDS Myōkō; the latest in a string of incidents marring the young officer's career. Alex is given a dressing-down by Admiral Shane, and later learns from his brother that there is a good chance he will be discharged at the end of RIMPAC. Meanwhile, Samantha accompanies Army veteran and amputee Mick Canales on a hike on Oahu in order to help him adapt to his prosthetic legs. A small fleet of alien ships arrives in response to the NASA signal. One ship collides with an orbital satellite and crashes in Hong Kong, while four others land in the waters near Hawaii. Sampson, John Paul Jones, and Myōkō are sent to investigate, but are trapped when one of the ships erects an impenetrable forcefield around the Hawaiian islands. The three destroyers attempt to establish contact, but are attacked by a second alien vessel: Sampson and Myōkō are destroyed, and John Paul Jones is damaged with the commanding and executive officers killed, forcing Alex to take command. Although initially wanting to attack the alien ship in retaliation for his brother's death, Alex is convinced to break off and recover survivors from Myōkō; this act prompts the aliens to interpret the surviving destroyer as not a threat. Although the forcefield is preventing the use of radar and sonar, Nagata reveals that they could use the tsunami warning buoys around Hawaii to track the alien vessels by their displacement. During a night-time battle, the aliens and the Americans exchange pot shots, with John Paul Jones sinking two, but unable to lock onto the third. An alien is recovered from the water; from this, the humans determine that the aliens are very sensitive to sunlight. Alex uses his ship to lure the alien vessel close to shore, where he and Nagata shoot out its bridge windows at sunrise. Both John Paul Jones and the alien ship are destroyed in the ensuing battle. Meanwhile, a group of alien soldiers and scientists have landed on Oahu. Samantha and Mick narrowly avoid their detection, and run into a fleeing NASA scientist. Because their communications ship was the one that crashed, the alien ground force has captured the NASA communications array, and are modifying it to signal their home planet. Believing that a larger invasion might be imminent, Samantha contacts Alex, and warns him. Alex had planned to destroy the array with his ship, but after John Paul Jones is destroyed, the survivors are forced to return to base and acquire the only available naval vessel, the battleship USS Missouri. Although a museum ship, Alex and his crew are able to reactivate Missouri with the aid of the veterans preserving her. The battleship is able to disable the forcefield being generated by the last alien ship, but end up with only one high-explosive shell left. Alex uses it to fire on the NASA array, but before the defenceless Missouri can be attacked by the aliens on the alien ship, an aircraft from the RIMPAC fleets arrives and eliminates the alien ship, while the NASA array explodes, destroying all the aliens. Back on shore, the naval personnel, along with Mick, are honored for their actions in defeating the alien invasion. After the ceremony, Alex finally asks Admiral Shane for his daughter's hand in marriage; the Admiral initially refuses, then invites Alex to lunch (by recalling the chicken burrito incident) to discuss the matter.

Sabtu, 14 April 2012

Act of Valour

Act of Valor is a 2012 American action film directed by Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh, and written by Kurt Johnstad. It stars Alex Veadov, Roselyn Sánchez, Nestor Serrano, Emilio Rivera, and actual active duty U.S. Navy SEALs and U.S. Navy Special Warfare Combatant Crewmen. The film was released on February 24, 2012.



Plot

The movie opens with a narrative written by Chief Petty Officer Dave to the son of a friend, discussing heroism, bravery, and a code of honor, as footage of a High-Altitude, Low-Opening (HALO) airborne jump plays.

In the Philippines, a suicide bomber kills the American ambassador, his son, and dozens of children, using a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device at a private school. The mastermind, a Chechen terrorist named Abu Shabal, escapes and returns to Russia.

In Costa Rica, two CIA Agents, Walter Ross (Nestor Serrano) and Morales (Roselyn Sánchez) meet to consolidate intelligence about their target, a drug smuggler named Mikhail "Christo" Troykovich. Christo's men kill Ross and capture Morales, bringing her to a riverside compound. Christo orders her to be tortured but kept alive until she tells the smugglers what she knows.

At Coronado, California, the members of Bandito Platoon, SEAL Team Seven are at home. Lieutenant Rorke confides to Chief Dave that his wife is pregnant. The sailors spend time with their families at the beach, then together at the Coronado docks; the next day, they deploy to the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6) in the South Pacific, where they are briefed on the events in Costa Rica. The CIA believes that the agents were targeted for investigating a connection between Abu Shabal and Christo. The SEAL team is ordered to extract Morales.

The seven Navy SEALs insert into the jungle via another HALO jump and hold position outside the compound all night. At dawn, Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen are inserted down the river from the compound on-board small unit riverine craft and deploy a drone that identifies the guards and a large group of enemies camped down the road. The SEALs approach the compound, hear Morales being tortured, and decide to enter the compound early. Rorke and Weimy, the team sniper, provide cover for the other five, led by Dave, who conduct room-clearing, engaging several enemy guards. One SEAL is shot in the eye, blinding him and knocking him unconscious. The SEALs extract Morales, escaping with her and recovering a cell phone full of the information she had gathered. However, the gunfight alerts the enemy quick reaction force down the road, who drive toward the camp. The SEALs commandeer an enemy truck and exfiltrate. The hot pursuit forces them to revert to a tertiary extraction point, where the SURC boats and SWCCs meet them and shoot up the enemy trucks and soldiers.

Christo and Shabal meet in Ukraine. Christo knows the CIA is watching him and informs Shabal that subordinates will complete their project. Shabal is enraged, but goes to the factory that Christo specified, where bomb vests are being assembled. These use plastic explosives and ceramic ball bearings to work like a claymore mine, can evade metal detectors, and are thin enough to be worn under any clothing without notice.

On the carrier, Senior Chief Petty Officer Miller, the operations officer of the SEAL team, informs Rorke that the SEAL who was shot in the head will survive, without one eye. In addition, the intelligence they recovered confirms that Shabal and Christo were working together. Shabal, an old-school Muslim terrorist, seeks to bring the jihad to the United States, while Christo is not just a drug dealer but a smuggler, with routes and contacts into the United States. Two of the SEALs are sent to Somalia, where an arms transfer involving Shabal is taking place. The remaining four, minus the SEAL who lost his eye, stay in the U.S. in case the terrorists make it in. Miller himself has been reassigned to SEAL Team Four, hunting for Christo somewhere on the oceans. Lieutenant Rorke gives a letter to Dave in case he is killed.

The two SEALs in Somalia confirm the presence of Shabal and sixteen terrorists, and identify his plane. They track the plane to an island off Baja California, where the team assaults. They successfully attack and secure the island, killing eight terrorists. Rorke is nearly killed by a RPG that strikes his vest directly in the chest but does not detonate.

Meanwhile, in the South Pacific, Christo is hiding with his family aboard their yacht, guarded by gunboats and mercenaries. SEAL Team Four identifies the yacht with satellite imaging and deploys several helicopters and gunboats. They quickly kill the guards, capture the yacht, and capture Christo and his family. Chief Miller interrogates Christo. Threatened with permanent separation from his family, Christo reveals his connection with Shabal and his plans to have his sixteen fighters detonate their vests at strategic points throughout the United States, causing a panic and doing economic damage surpassing that following the September 11 attacks. But Christo says he is powerless to stop the attack.

The SEALs are informed that not all of their targets were neutralized and that half, including Shabal, are en route to the United States, via tunnels underneath a milk factory. They are ordered to link up with Mexican Special Forces and neutralize the remaining targets. U.S. Marines relieve the SEALs and enter Mexico, meeting the Mexican Special Forces. The Mexican leader informs the SEALs that the assault will be extremely dangerous, as the smugglers are supported by the well-armed local drug cartel, and that a "Black Hawk Down"-style stalemate would have political consequences.

The SEALs and Mexican forces assault the factory, hiding in dump trucks. The combined forces cordon off the factory while Rorke, the Mexican officer, Chief Dave, and several other SEALs clear most of the factory. The Mexican officer is wounded and the SEALs are nearly killed as the explosive vest of a suicide bomber deploys. As they reach the tunnels, an enemy fighter drops an M67 fragmentation grenade into the room, "cooked" to minimize time to detonation. Only Lieutenant Rorke sees the grenade land. Realizing his team cannot escape the room in time, he dives on the grenade and it detonates, mortally wounding him. Dave pursues the terrorists alone, as the remaining SEAL in the team tends to Rorke. Dave catches up to the terrorists as they try to escape through the tunnels, but shoots seven of them as they flee into the entrance. However, Shabal appears and fires nearly thirty rounds from an AK-47 into Dave, destroying his weapon in addition to critically wounding him. Dave draws his sidearm and kills the eighth suicide bomber as he runs into the tunnel. Shabal approaches Dave and prepares to execute him, but is killed by other SEALs who have arrived.

At home, Rorke is given a military funeral with full honors, while Dave survived his injuries. The SEALs pay their respects, punching the gold SEAL tridents that signify them as SEALs into Rorke's coffin. Dave finishes the letter that he was reading from at the beginning of the movie, telling Lieutenant Rorke's son of the valor of the father he will never know, and ending with a poem by Tecumseh. The film ends with a dedication to every U.S. Navy SEAL killed in action since 9/11, and a list of their names. Cast

Jumat, 06 April 2012

Wrath of the Titans

Wrath of the Titans is a 2012 American fantasy film and sequel to the 2010 film Clash of the Titans. The film stars Sam Worthington, Rosamund Pike, Bill Nighx, Édgar Ramírez, Toby Kebbell, Danny Huston, Ralph Fiennes and Liam Neeson with Jonathan Liebesman directing a screenplay by Dan Mazeau and David Leslie Johnson. Wrath of the Titans takes place a decade after the events of the first film as the gods lose control over the imprisoned Titans and Perseus is called once again, this time to rescue his father Zeus, overthrow the Titans and save mankind.

Talk of a sequel began with the release of Clash of the Titans in March 2010. Scribes Dan Mazeau and David Leslie Johnson were hired in June 2010 and director Jonathan Liebesman was brought on-board in August 2010. The majority of the casting took place between January and February 2011. Principal photography began in London in March 2011. The film was converted to 3D in post-production. Wrath of the Titans was released in 2D and 3D on March 30, 2012 in the United States.

Plot

Ten years after he defeated The Kraken, Perseus (Sam Worthington), the demigod son of Zeus (Liam Neeson), now lives as a fisherman with his 10-year-old son, Helius (John Bell). One night, Perseus is visited by Zeus, who tells him that the powers of the gods are fading and the walls of the underworld prison of Tartarus are breaking due to the lack of devotion from humans and states they will need the world's armies to combat the potential threat, but Perseus shows little interest and refuses to get involved. Afterwards, Zeus travels to Tartarus to meet with his brothers Hades (Ralph Fiennes) and Poseidon (Danny Huston), and his son Ares (Edgar Ramirez). He tells Hades they must forget the past and unite to rebuild Tartarus, but Hades orders his minions to attack. They severely injure Poseidon, and Ares betrays Zeus over showing Perseus more affection, taking him prisoner and stealing his thunderbolt. Hades and Ares plan to drain Zeus' power to revive their father Kronos in exchange for the two to remain immortal.

The walls of Tartarus break, unleashing monsters into the world. Perseus then takes Helius to the Mount of Idols, so they can speak to Zeus, but the dying Poseidon arrives instead. He informs Perseus that Hades and Ares are holding Zeus in Tartarus, and tells him to meet with his demigod son Agenor (Toby Kebbell) to find the fallen god Hephaestus, who knows the way into Tartarus. Poseidon gives Perseus his trident before succumbing to his injuries and crumbling into dust.

Perseus flies on the Pegasus to the camp site of Queen Andromeda's army. Andromeda (Rosamund Pike) has imprisoned Agenor for stealing crown jewels, but Perseus has him released. Perseus, Andromeda, Agenor, and a group of soldiers set out at sea to find Hephaestus, with Agenor explaining that Hephaestus created the three great weapons that Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon wield: Zeus’ Thunderbolt, Hades' Pitchfork, and Poseidon’s Trident, and that together they form the Spear of Triam, the only weapon that can defeat Kronos. Agenor uses Poseidon's trident to direct the boat to Hephaestus's island, where they encounter three Cyclopes who attack them. When Perseus shows them the trident, they lead the group to Hephaestus (Bill Nighy) who explains that he has a map to navigate the path into Tartarus. He leads them to the door into the Labyrinth, where they are attacked by Ares after a soldier prayed for him to come. Ares kills most of the soldiers while Hephaestus opens the door. Hephaestus then sacrifices himself so that Perseus, Andromeda, and Agenor can enter the door before it closes. Agenor tries to use the map to direct them, but the labyrinth continually shifts. Perseus gets cut off from the group and encounters and kills a Minotaur. Eventually, The group reunites at Tartarus.

Meanwhile, Zeus has been almost entirely drained of power and close to death as Kronos starts to awaken. Zeus apologizes to Hades and asks his forgiveness as he forgives Hades for his actions. Hades has a change of heart and finally decides to help Zeus and the human army, but Ares intervenes. Perseus arrives and uses the trident to free Zeus. As they are escaping, Ares throws Hades's pitchfork into Zeus's back.

Perseus, Andromeda, and Agenor and carry a weakened Zeus down to the base of the mountain where Andromeda's army is gathered. Perseus combines the trident and Hades’ pitchfork, but he still needs Zeus's thunderbolt, which Ares still has. Perseus prays to Ares, challenging him to a fight at the Temple of Gods, which Ares accepts. At the temple, Perseus finds out Ares has kidnapped Helius, who brought him to watch Perseus die. Ares easily subdues Perseus, but is distracted when Helius tries to challenge him by pointing a sword at him, giving Perseus the opportunity to subdue him. Perseus then destroys Ares with Zeus's Thunderbolt and combines the gods' weapons into the Spear of Triam. Meanwhile, Andromeda's army is subdued by Kronos' army of Makhai, but a redeemed Hades and a revived Zeus use what power they have left to defeat the army, who have murdered almost all of Andromeda's men. Kronos then appears and starts to destroy them, in which Zeus and Hades defend them and at the same time are giving Perseus the opportunity to fly right down Kronos' throat. Kronos lets out one last blast, and Zeus takes the brunt of the force to protect Hades. Perseus throws the Spear into Kronos' stomach, destroying him once and for all.

Perseus meets with Zeus and Hades. Zeus commends Perseus for his courage, stating that the time of the gods is over before turning to dust. Hades is now human, though he states he might be better as one before walking away. Perseus reunites with Andromeda and kisses her, and then decides to train Helius to be a soldier.