dsalouk Halo 4; Forward Unto Dawn continues the trend every movie that has been adapted from a game has set; it fails incredibly. The director; Stewart Hendler, has shown that he has brought his unique type of direction to this movie, and in doing so, it has a poor structure, and incredibly poor acting. The chemistry between Thom Green and Anna Popplewell is unbelievable, and at times their dialogue is obviously scripted. The excitement of seeing the Chief himself was not enough to carry this movie that failed on most fronts. For a viewer watching this as a stand alone film, it is disappointing and lacklustre, however, if you're an avid Halo player, then maybe there is enough nostalgia and references to keep the tedious story afloat.

Horst in Translation ([email protected]) Most of the action in this 2012 miniseries takes place in a futuristic military academy. The protagonists are trained to be good soldiers. Green and Popplewell give both decent performances, Zurer's part is too small to make an impact and Brewster proves she is not a good actress. The whole thing runs for 90 minutes and you can either watch it as a five-part miniseries or as an entire movie. The action is very cliché and has been done so many times. The male protagonist is the brother of a successful former soldier and fails to be as good as his brother. But only initially of course, as it is always in these films. When the going gets tough, i.e. humanity is attacked and lots of explosions happen, he proves to be as good (probably better) than his legendary brother. Near the end, everybody except our group of heroes is killed. Also done many times. I am not the greatest science fiction fan, but this movie lacked some originality to me. Or maybe you have to have played the games to really appreciate it. Which I have not, but also which this film could not inspire me to do. The film's director is not too known, but the writer has worked on "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" and, more recently, the very much hyped new television series "The Flash". I assume he has improved over the last couple years as "Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn" is a mostly forgettable effort. Not recommended.

SnoopyStyle The year is 2526. Thomas Lasky (Tom Green) struggles in training at the Corbulo Academy of Military Science on the planet Cirnicus-IV. He is a disappointment considering his illustrious military family. His only friend is fellow cadet Chyler Silva (Anna Popplewell). Humanity has ventured out to colonize other worlds. The big threat is expected to be colony insurrectionists. Then the planet is invaded by an alien army, the Covenant, which is kept secret from everybody except the higher ups.As a web mini-series, there is some good work with impressive F/X for the price. As a TV show, this is better than most Syfy channel work. It's more of an interesting road map of what a Halo TV show or movie could be. Tom Green is a relative newcomer. I've only seen him in a TV show called Camp. It's a different character with a completely different hair cut. Anna Popplewell is probably the only recognizable name and face. She does the only competent acting on the show. In the end, this is not about the acting or even the story. This is mostly a dry run to get the look, the style and the effects correct for something bigger later on. At least, that's the big hope for fans. Looking at what they have, I hope they dial back the shaky cam work. I also hope that they lose the slow-mo Michael Bay wannabe. This seems to be going for Battlestar Galactica and I think that's a good move. If they make a theatrical war movie, it's going to need more money, a lot more money. However I think there is a great horror movie available for a lot less cash.

Helio Copter First of all, I have virtually no experience playing the Halo games, and thus only a very casual acquaintance with their universe and story line. I like science fiction, though, and was interested in something with action, so I gave Halo 4 a spin, not expecting too terribly much. As at least one other reviewer has written, ALL CAPS WOW!This film is simply astounding in the quality of its production values, cast, writing, cinematography and musical score. I am completely blow away. I have not seen a science fiction/action film this arresting in a long time. Just the visual aspect of it is incredibly beautiful. From what I understand -- I could be wrong -- this was not released in theaters, but I would absolutely love to see something like this on a big screen.Does it start out slowly? I suppose so, but I am a big fan of taking time to develop characters, establish themes and set the stage. Once the action hits, it is intense, and that is only helped by the build up to it. I was on the edge of my seat, lost track of time, and kept thinking to myself, How can this be so good? A little bit of Starship Troopers without the satire/gore, a little bit of Aliens w/out the 80s rough edges, a little bit of Ender's Game with a more hands-on approach, but with a specific modern style all its own. Halo 4 may be just an origin story on a small scale, but what a ride! Highly recommended if you enjoy being transported and thrilled.