Hayleigh Joseph
This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.
elainehowie
I thought this film was half decent. I can see where the bad reviews are coming from but this is a kind of film where you have to not pay attention to reason and logic. If you enjoyed the first two, you will probably enjoy this one but perhaps not as much.
MaximumMadness
Robert Rodriguez is honestly one of the most frustrating figures in Hollywood that one could follow and be a fan of. From his humble beginnings as a low-budget action director on films like "El Mariachi", to the slick and stylish effects-extravaganzas like "Sin City", Rodriguez has proved time and again that he's a grand storyteller and a valuable member of the filmmaking community. Yet, for every major breakthrough he's played a part in, and for all of his remarkable high- quality releases that wow both critics and audiences alike... there's at least one if not not more significant and wince-inducing missteps that make you question your fandom. For every "Desperado", there's a "Machete Kills"... For every "From Dusk Till Dawn", there's an "Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl." And for every "Spy Kids", there's unfortunately a film like "Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over." While I was never quite the target audience for Rodriguez's manic and wild kids-film series, I still could definitely not deny its imagination and creativity. The first two chapters, flawed though they may be, are fine and entertaining features that to this day still thrill and wow children the world over. The same could not be said of the third chapter. Released in the early 2000's when Rodriguez was experimenting with the new digital technology that would become a hallmark of his more recent work, "Game Over" is a frustratingly mediocre follow-up to two otherwise good films, and I think it's pretty clear what the problem is- Rodriguez doesn't really seem to treat this round of "Spy Kids" as anything more than a sophisticated tech-demo. It's not really a movie so much as it's an 80-minute experiment that our writer/director is using to test the bounds of green-screen filmmaking and low-cost visual effects. It's cold, methodical, clinical and frankly boring.Juni Cortez (Daryl Sabara) has retired from the OSS and now lives a quiet life as a child private investigator. However, when he learns that his sister Carmen (Alexa Vega) has been captured and is evidently imprisoned in the Beta of an upcoming virtual-reality video-game called "Game Over", he is forced back into action! He must infiltrate this new game- created by a dastardly villain called "The Toymaker" (Sylvester Stallone), to save his sister and perhaps the world once again! Along the way, he will encounter new friends and allies, and also call on the help of returning characters to stop The Toymaker's evil plans...Honestly, it's really hard to discuss the merits of the film because there's so little happening. Yeah, there's the shell of a plot and one or two minor beats of character establishment and development, but its only there to justify the constant and consistent sequences of green-screen "action." It's obvious that Rodriguez is simply using the film as a platform to play around with his new digital "toys", and the movie suffers for it. The actors appear lost in most of the scenes (presumably because they are, as they awkwardly walk around in front of a blank screen), and what little story there is comes off more like an afterthought than a focus. What makes it all the more confusing is that just a few years later, Rodriguez co-directed the excellent "Sin City", which similarly used a near-exclusive "green screen studio" approach, but it worked. Maybe his experience and mistakes with this film helped him to learn what to do and what not?Really, the only thing I can address is the quality of the effects and the nature of the action, and that is what just barely salvages the film. While the digital animation is pretty low-quality, it works as it was attempting to emulate video-games, so it gave it a sort-of appropriately-dated quality that I enjoyed. The action can be dull quite often, but a few sequences do adequate jobs at wowing the audience, so there's some fun to be had with the video-game concept. I also felt the early use of "modern 3-D" was charming, and while it mainly consists of throwing something in the audience's face every few minutes, it worked well enough. I might not be a fan of the old-fashioned Red/Cyan glasses approach, but the 3-D gave it a sense of kitschy fun. I also did enjoy the rampant cameos of characters from the previous films, and I think they'll likely delight young children.As it stands, "Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over" is a disappointing and forgettable sequel in the franchise, and won't likely win any new fans. Its just a series of loosely-connected CGI action set-pieces with a paper-thin plot to tie them together. But I think there's just enough dumb fun to be had with just enough key sequences that massive fans of the first two might wanna consider giving it a shot at least once. Everyone else need not apply, though.It gets a below-average 4 out of 10 from me.
Python Hyena
Spy Kids: 3D-Game Over (2003): Dir: Robert Rodriguez / Cast: Daryl Sabara, Alexa Vega, Ricardo Montalban, Sylvester Stallone, Antonio Banderas: Lifeless 3D sequel about kids being controlled or entrapped in video games. Central plot regards a toy maker who invites kids to literally become part of a video game where they remain trapped if they lose. Juni Cortez sets to rescue his sister and is aided by his wheelchair bound grandfather. Lame plot with only its 3D images to gain any interest. Directed by Robert Rodriguez who isn't nearly as successful here as he was with the first film. Daryl Sabara plays Juni who accepts the task at hand and prevails through disaster until arriving at a corny climax. Alexa Vega as his sister gets to be a prisoner in the game until Sabara bails her ass out. Ricardo Montalban as the grandfather is the best performance going from disabled to becoming the puzzle piece that matters as well as do the one thing that the villain wasn't prepared for. Sylvester Stallone as the toy maker is involved in a lot of corny scenes but it appears that Stallone is laughing at himself, which makes his performance somewhat tolerable. Antonio Banderas and Carla Gugino return as the parents but they are merely making cameos at this point. Despite its message regarding video game addiction the film seems purposed as a money making gimmick. Score: 5 / 10
mdumars
This has got to be one of the worst movies I've ever seen. The main character in the movie is the son, who is a horrible actor. The better actor, the sister, enters the movie near the end. I would have had her in the entire movie.Grades: Sly Stallone - F Ricardo Maltabon - F George Clooney - C (the best part of the movie is when he imitates Sly) Salma Hayak - A (hey, it's Salma Hayak)Elijah Woods has a cameo in it and is pretty funny.Selena Gomez makes a cameo in the movie and is as cute as ever.My 4 & 6 yr old boys would have given it a 9.
