The Dark Knight Official Trailer : My Thoughts

With the release of the new trailer for The Dark Knight, my fears have been laid to rest. No other trailer have i been more excited about, shit, no FILM have i been more excited about. So i will attempt now to go through point by point some of my views on the trailer. I will be doing a youtube specific review in the new year. Remember to watch it above to help with the understanding of this "Review" / "thoughts"

POINTS

1. Narration by The Joker. - very good move, an usual choice but i love the way it opens with joker's perspective not batman, very nice movie.

2. The batbike intro - nice, coupled with the images of bruce on his own in his house, then on the rooftop really help quickly establish the idea of Gothem against batman and batman being a loner and not much different from joker.

3. Joker in cell "knives and lint" - Awesome. I like the sense of fear and menace that is built just by this short clip, joker seems very indifferent, just sitting there. The knives and lint line is chilling as is "evening commissionor" with ledger's chilling delivery

4. "Why so Serious!" - Fantastic moment that shows the agression and the darker tone they are taking the joker. Also followed by an awesome moment with him hanging his head out of the car window adding to the insanity and carefree nature of this character. Rocket launcher moment also good and brings the character back to the weedy / fumbling aspects brought up in the cartoons.

5. Bat signal smash - I'm not sure about this storyline, having heard about the fake batmans and possible framing of batman, it seems a little cliched, but i'm willing to wait and see.

6. General action scenes - all the aaction seems to notch stuff


7. Street showdown - the moments of joker and batman in the street "c'mon HIT ME!" reminded me very much of the 1989 burton film with joker and the batwing.
---------------------------

All in all, lets face it the main reason people wanted to see the trailer was for Heath Ledger's version of The Joker, and from my humble opinion, i can't fucking wait.

The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou (2004)

In many ways this is Wes Anderson's most commercial and mainstream outing. Though still maintaining common themes of his previous films (family, and more to the point the definition of family) With The Life Aquatic what you get is Wes doing, maybe for the first time, an all out comedy.

Yes it stilll has the quirky moments you come to expect but it also has far out whacky "slapstick" moments. Including Bill Murray's steve zissou running into a room of pirates firing a gun, fight scenes, and other aspects that take it away from the more subtle aspect of say Rushmore. That's what i like about Wes Anderson as a director, he is known for his quirky style but he's not afraid to take it to the extreme too. The final job in bottle rocket, the wedding reception in royal tenenbaums and many scenes in life aquatic prove this.

Bill Murray steals the show here and it's a nice change of pace for him. After his more downbeat / subtle performance in the brilliant, Rushmore, he seemed to take roles that suited that style (Lost in Translation , Broken Flowers) but here we see a great mix of the subtle qaulities of Translation and the more out there style seen in ghostbusters or groundhog day. I could pick out so many comedy gems from murray in this film. Jeff Goldblum also pulls in a solid performance here and he and murray bounce comedically of eachother quite well. Owen is as always great and further proves he is at his pure best when working with Wes, no other of his performances come close (see bottle rocket for Owen's shining moment - and first film)

Life Aquatic mixes surreal with ...well not even real.. i guess hyper reality. Everything is slightly off kilter, which adds to the charm. One of the most interesting points of the film is that of the fish. Being a film about an oceanographer, sea life is present. However the marine life is animated using stop motion animation. A form of animation i love, however here, it never quite mixed well. It seemed too odd, the characters themselves were odd enough to sustain the zaney-ness of the film. However it does help to further seperate it from his other work.

Further seperating it is the choice of music. Seu Jorge provides the majority of the music with covers of Bowie songs, with the odd original bowie song thrown in there at key moments. The addition of Seu Jorge, who also played a character, who would sit and play songs, seemed a little odd, and a very commercial move.

All in all, The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou is a brave move for Wes Anderson. I remember seeing this in the cinema and comming out having never laughed so much in a cinema, i was a keen Andersonite at that point already. However on 3rd and 4th watches i can see how this film may dissapoint some Wes Anderson fans. It is more mainstream, it is more commercial, but please, look past that. it still holds values from all his films previous, but with a stronger attempt at broad comedy. Bill Murray is fantastic here and steals every scene, What Wes has done here is create something that will appeal to none fans of Wes, and one of Murray's finesy performances.

2007 Movie Releases I'm Still Catching Up With

Want Too See

(Bold - REALLY REALLY Wanna See.)

Zodiac
Stardust
Shoot Em' Up

Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters
No Country for Old Men (2008 in UK)
Eastern Promises
Severance
Vacancy
The Lives of Others

30 Days of Night
Dead Silence

Sicko (2007)

Bowling For Columbine was an amazing piece of work that was engaging, funny, heartwarming, sad and beautifully told. One of the finest Documentary films i have seen. Fahrenheit 9/11 was for sure a step down for Michael Moore. Less engaging, too overally political and overall didn't have the impact of Columbine


With Sicko, Moore is looking into the currupt medical system within the united states. It's an improvement on Fahrenheit but didn't reach the heights of Columbine. From a directing standpoint it's more towards columbine. Because unlike Fahrenheit which seemed just a tool in which moore could express his political views, Sicko uses human stories to make his point, which gives it an extra level of it being a problem that effects people. Some of the stories were truely sad, and they worked in the context of the documentary, becausei felt like throwing stuff at the screen because of the terrible situations the US health system had left these people in. Moore does have a likeability factor, and a certain charisma that shines through on the screen.


However, and it's a pretty big "however", there is one simple, and i mean simple, point where sicko loses a lot of its credit. The moment Moore steps out of the states and tries to make a point about other countries health systems, the weakness and one sided mind of moore is exposed. He goes to the UK, and of course, health care is free here but we still have our issues, issues that Moore seems to have overlooked. Instead he hails all other countries Health systems as heaven and faultless. He also not only dumbs down his general arguement by skipping over facts opting for a faultless utopia of health but his attitude makes him seem really...stupid. He wonders around asking "so how much did that cost?" about 50 times "i was beginning to wonder where the cashier guy was" "This can't be true..[montage of him asking the same question]...maybei should check another country"...Que france....Same stupid questions. It just came off as dumbed down. I totally agree that the currupt way the US works their health is wrong, based on profit and such. He's right to point out these issues, but point out the issues in other health systems, don't pratonise your audience and the people of those countries who (though have free health care) have to deal with plenty of other health issues, its not near perfect.

Even though this was a HUGE gripe for me, and i don't want to set it aside. I can though realise that he does expose some huge flaws in the US system, theres some great footage here too. Including 1950s public service videos, the true life stories are very interesting.

All in all, i can't fault Michael Moore's directorial talent. He's great with setting up the sequences to provide gripping documentary film making. He is also exposing subjects that need to be exposed and there is a huge fault in the US health system. This is deffinatly a step up from Fahrenheit 9/11. However his ability to dumb down his approach, plainly skip over issues in other countries to service his own point takes this film down quite a few pegs for me.

Favuorite Directors

Tim Burton
Seen: Vincent, Beetle Juice, Batman, Edward Scissorhands, Batman Returns, Ed Wood, Mars Attacks!, Sleepy Hollow, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride
Want too see: Planet of the Apes, Big Fish, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Wes Anderson
Seen: Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, Hotel Chevalier, The Darjeeling Limited
Want too see: The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) - this is gonna be interesting to say the least

Quentin Tarantino
Seen: Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Kill Bill, Kill Bill Vol.2, Death Proof
Want too see: Inglorious Bastards (2008)

Martin Scorsese
Seen: Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Casino, Gangs Of New York, The Aviator, The Departed
Want too see: Mean Streets

David Fincher
Seen: Alien 3, Se7en, The Game, Fight Club, Panic Room
Want too see: Zodiac

Farrelly Bros.
Seen: Dumb & Dumber, Kingpin, There's Something About Mary, Me Myself & Irene, Shallow Hal
Want too see Stuck On You, Fever Pitch, Heartbreak Kid

Coen Bros.
Seen: Raising Arizona, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Ladykillers
Want To See: Blood Simple, Miller's Crossing, Barton Fink, The Man Who Wasn't There, No Country For Old Men

Favourite Actors / Actresses

Actors

Paul Giamatti
Seen: Sideways, Cinderella Man, Man On The Moon
Want too see: Lady in the Water, The Illusionist, American Splendor.

Jim Carrey
Seen: Truman Show, Ace Ventura 1&2, Dumb Dumber, Cable Guy, Liar Liar, Eternal Sunshine, Man On The Moon, Me Myself & Irene, Fun With Dick & Jane, Bruce Almighty, The Majestic
Want Too See: The Number 23

John Cusack
Seen:Grosse Pointe Blank, Con Air, Being John Malkovich, High Fidelity Identity
Want Too See: The Thin Red Line

Steve Bucemi
Seen Reservoir Dogs, Airheads, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Con Ai, Ghost World, Monsters Inc.
Want Too See: Trees Lounge

Alec Baldwin
Seen Beetle Juice, The Cooler, The Aviator,Fun with Dick and Jane, Royal Tenenbaums (Narrator), The Departed
Want Too See: The Good Sheperd

James Gandolfini
Seen: True Romance, Get Shorty, The Last Castle, "The Sopranos"
Want Too See The Man Who Wasn't There, The Mexican

Will Smith
Seen "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air", Made in America, Independence Day, Men in Black 1&2, I Robot, Shark Tale, The Pursuit of Happyness
Want Too See: Ali, I Am Legend

Jack Nicholson
Seen: Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Shining, Batman, Mars Attacks! As Good as It Gets, Anger Management, About Schmidt, The Departed
Want Too See

Steve Zahn
Seen: Reality Bites, You've Got Mail, Chain Of Fools, Saving Silverman, Joy Ride, Riding In Cars With Boys, Shattered Glass
Want Too See : Rescue Dawn

Owen Wilson
Seen Bottle Rocket, The Cable Guy, Shanghai Noon, Meet the Parents, Zoolander, The Royal Tenenbaums, Starsky & Hutch, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, Meet The Fockers, Wedding Crashers, Cars, Night at the Museum, The Darjeeling Limited
Want Too See The Wendell Baker Story,

Jack Black
Seen: The Cable Guy, Mars Attacks!, "Tenacious D" (Tv Show), High Fidelity, Saving Silverman, Shallow Hal, Ice Age, Orange County , The School of Rock , Shark Tale, Envy, Anchorman, King Kong, Tenacious D: Pick Of Destiny.
Want Too See Be Kind, Rewind

Samuel L Jackson
Seen: Pulp Fiction, True Romance, Jurassic Park, One Eight Seven, Jackie Brown, Star Wars: Episode I, Unbreakable, Changing Lanes, Star Wars Episode 2, Star Wars Episode 3, Kill Bill Vol.2, The Incredibles, Snakes On A Plane.
Want Too See: Sydney, The Great White Hype, Trees Lounge, Coach Carter

Zach Braff
Seen: "Scrubs", Garden State
Want Too See: The Last Kiss

Al Pacino
Seen The Panic in Needle Park, The Godfather, The Godfather: Part II, Dog Day Afternoon, Scarface, Carlito's Way, Heat, Donnie Brasco, S1m0ne.
Want Too See: Godfather Part III, Glengarry Glen Ross, Scent of a Woman.

Michael Keaton
Seen: BeetleJuice, Batman, Batman Returns, Jackie Brown, Cars
Want Too See: White Noise

Robert De Niro
Seen: The Godfather: Part II , Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter, Raging Bull, The Untouchables, Goodfellas, This Boy's Life, Heat, Jackie Brown, Ronin, Analyze This, Meet The Parents, Godsend, Shark Tale, Hide & Seek, Meet The Fockers
Want Too See: Mean Streets, The King of Comedy , Once Upon a Time in America .

Ray Romano
Seen "Everybody Loves Raymond", Eulogy, Ice Age 1&2, Wellcome To Moosport
Want Too See Grilled

Jean Reno
Seen: Nikita ,Subway, Léon, MI, Godzilla, Ronin
Want Too See

Alan Rickman
Seen: Die Hard, Dogma, Galaxy Quest, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Want Too See: Something the Lord Made

Bill Murray
Seen: Caddyshack, Ghost Busters 1&2, Little Shop of Horrors, Scrooged, Groundhog Day, Ed Wood, Kingpin, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, Lost in Translation, Coffee & Cigarettes, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, Broken Flowers, Darjeeling Limited (Cameo)
Want Too See: Stripes, Tootsie, The Man Who Knew Too Little

Hank Azaria
Seen "The Simpsons", Mystery Men, Eulogy, Appearances in "Friends", Shattered Glass, The Simpsons Movie
Want Too See

Johnny Depp
Seen: A Nightmare on Elm Street, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, Donnie Brasco, Sleepy Hollow, Blow, Pirates of the Caribbean 1,2 & 3, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride
Want Too See: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, What's Eating Gilbert Grape

John Candy
Seen Little Shop of Horrors, Spaceballs, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, Uncle Buck, Cool Runnings, Rookie Of The Year, Home Alone
Want Too See Stripes, Splash, JFK, Who's Harry Crumb?

Christopher Walken
Seen Annie Hall, The Deer Hunter, A View to a Kill, Batman Returns, True Romance, Wayne's World 2, Pulp Fiction, Blast from the Past, Antz, Joe Dirt, Catch Me If You Can, Envy, Wedding Crashers, Click
Want Too See King of New York, Romance & Cigarettes

Bruce Willis
Seen: Die Hard, Die Hard 2, Pulp Fiction, Die Hard: With a Vengeance, Twelve Monkeys, The Fifth Element, The Sixth Sense, The Whole Nine Yards, Unbreakable, Hostage, Sin City, Lucky Number Slevin, 16 Blocks, Over the Hedge, Live Free or Die Hard
Want Too See: The Jackal, Mercury Rising, Armageddon

Actresses

Zooey Deschanel
Seen Almost Famous, Big Trouble, Elf, Eulogy, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
Want Too See Live Free or Die

Drew Barrymore
Seen ET, Wayne's World 2, Donnie Darko, Riding in Cars with Boys
Want Too See The Wedding Singer

Natalie Portman
Seen Léon, Heat, Mars Attacks!, Star Wars: Episode 1 2 & 3, Garden State, V for Vendetta, Hotel Chavelia
Want Too See

Winona Ryder
Seen Beetle Juice, Edward Scissorhands, Reality Bites, Alien: Resurrection, Mr. Deeds, S1m0ne Want Too See Girl, Interrupted

Helena Bonham Carter

Instant Memories....Merry Christmas

Saw Traps Music Video

I made it, enjoy !

Top 10 Movies of 2007

I've waited a long time to make this list, and here it is !

TOP 10

1. The Bourne Ultimatum

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GbvNL6s45U - Trailer

2. This Is England
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0jkv2bRFgQ - Trailer

3. Knocked Up
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F6YTdGWxLY Trailer

4. The Darjeeling Limited
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aO1bYukdvLI - Trailer

5. Grindhouse (Planet Terror / Death Proof)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0AaVUs3-Pw

6. Ratatouille
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYUjNQrokeg&feature=related

7. Superbad
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3UFV1in5Qk

8. Hot Fuzz
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7J_vYN5ZkY

9. Sunshine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZ2-xR54UDU&feature=related

10. Reign Over Me
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZ3_OZzxCmw

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Other highlights of the year

Transformers , Kenny, Sicko, Ocean's Thirteen , 28 Weeks Later, The Simpsons Movie, 300, Live Free or Die Hard, Smokin' Aces, Blades Of Glory

Worth A Look

Saw IV, Shooter, Spider-man 3, Ghost Rider.

Meh

Death Sentence, Fantastic Four : Rise of The Silver Surfer.

NO

Run, Fatboy, Run , Hostel Part II, Mr bean's Holiday, The Hills Have Eyes 2

NNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Norbit, Epic Movie

The Darjeeling Limited (2007)

I first discovered Wes Anderson with Royal Tenenbaums which to this day is still my go to favourite movie of all time. I'm a huge fan of his style of film making sometimes pretencious yes, but there is a lot of directorial talent there.

Darjeeling Limited follows the story of 3 brothers who after the death of their father travel around india on "The Darjeeling Limited" train and attempt to go on a spiritual journey to re-connect with eachother.

Darjeeling opens with what is actually one of Wes Anderson's finest moments. We follow Bill Murray who is playing a business man, we see him in a taxi rushing to the train station, the train is leaving and we follow him rushing for it. The camera slows and Adrian Brody also running for the train over takes Murray and reaches the train. It's a great moment, a passing of the tourch if you will from Murray to Brody, as muuray has been a major fixture of Anderson's movies since Rushmore in 1998. There is also a scene where some kids are playing on a raft on a river and it gets swept away. The guys jump in to save them, adrian brody's character is on the raft with the kid swimming to safety when it flips and both end up under the water. This is followed by a muffled dip in the audio (much as you might expect in a war movie) and we see Jason's character running across the bank. A still moment, then Adrian's character emerges from the water with blood down his face and shirt holding the kid. He quickly announces "he's dead,he's already died" This has to be one of Anderson's finest moments, he doesn't give you a second to adjust. The raft is turned over quick, then followed by frantic running and dip of audio, then when adrian emerges he ends any hope straight away. A brave move, but it worked. I may say that if you're going to be picky you could point fault that maybe this characters death is mainly used to service the toher characters story and segway into a flashback. However, the excellent direction that is taken in that scene totally makes up for it.

All performances are top notch. Adrien Brody shines here adapting quickly and perfectly to anderson's somewhat quirky style. Owen Wilson is solid as always, his character here reminded me very much of his role in bottle rocket, which is of course a wellcomed addition. Anjelica Huston another wes Anderson regular is also back and puts in the best performance i have seen from her and spends way too little time on screen. It's a more subtle performance than in her previous collaborations with Anderson, and benefits for it.

Then there's Jason Schwartzman. Before the film played, you are treated to a 15 minute short movie, Hotel Chevalier. A prequel of sorts to Darjeeling featuring Jason's character Jack and his on-off girlfriend played by Natalie Portman. You get back story to Jason's character, and works perfectly with Darjeeling. It's somewhat art house, and fairly risqué too. Jason's character in Hotel/Darjeeling, reminded me of an older version of his character from Rushmore, just bit more successful with the ladies. He still played it with that conflicted mind, and a quiet, almost depressive attitude, much like Max fischer from Rushmore.

The scenery and interia of the train are fantastic with every bit of detail you would expect from Anderson. It used tracking shots from time to time in the train, much like the open interia from life aquatic. All of Anderson's films have ended with a slow motion end sequence leading to the credits, expect this one. Which (though a little disapointed, cus a fanboy like me i was wondering how it was gonna end in slow motion) he did use slow motion much more throughout the film brilliantly

All in all, this is not as funny as Life Aquatic, it may share a little too many conventions with Royal Tenenbaums. However what you have here is a beautiful looking film, with great direction, a top notch cast, great use of music and a poetic quiet mood that carries the film across, allowing for moments of chaos. Thats actually interesting because there are a fair few slap stick comedy moments or caper moments in this film (the snake, mace ect ect). It worked well previously in Life Aquatic and there were moments of it in Tenenbaums and Bottle Rocket. However what we have with darjeeling is a subtle mix of the slapstick comedy of Aquatic mixed with the subtle character driven narrative of Tenenbaums. Wes has done it (yet) again (and twice if you count Hotel Chevalier)

Flightplan (2005)

If you were to look up "Average" in the dictionary, you may well see a picture of this film. In fact this film is so depressingly average i can barely remember seeing it. I had been wanting to see it since its release in 2005. I liked the trailer and the narrative seemed interesting. However above all it was the cast that interested me. Jodie Foster who i enjoy watching in a majority of her films. Peter Sarsgaard, who had impressed me in "Garden State£ and was compelling in "Shattered Glass". However my like for the cast could not save this film

It's just a bit of a mess. incase you don't know the story is :

*A bereaved woman and her daughter are flying home from Berlin to America. At 30,000 feet the child vanishes and nobody admits she was ever on that plane* {Cheers IMDB!}

The main reason for me this film fails is this statement i found that IMDB used to describe it:

"A claustrophobic, Hitchcockian thriller"

Yeah, for a bit. I will admit, it does work as a hitchcockian thriller for the first 30-50 minutes where its more about her quizing passengers about the location of her daughter. Then we have Peter Sarsgaard who starts off quite scary with a quiet menace. Then he and his flight attendant girlfriend hold up the plane with a bomb and peter has a fight with jodie and the plane blows up. yes Hitchcockian, i remember in Rear window when James Stewart grabs a rocket launcher and blows up the opisite house. Also there was this subplot idea of jodie's character being physcologically unsound and she may of never brought her daughter on the plane, or there was never a daughter. This was a nice enough idea, but once it was discussed once, it became tiresome. There isn't really a sense of danger, its too slow. She runs around for a bit, the passengers get annoyed, Sean bean looks stern , then the plane explodes.

All in all this isn't the worst film ever, its just a mess of a film. It's nothing special, it doesn't try anything new, i got a strong sense i'd seen it before.

Live Free or Die Hard (2007)

I have a set of movies that i consider my all time favourites. By that, it means this : if i catch it on tv, whether its 1 minute into it or 1 hour into it, i get sucked in and end up staying with it and Die Hard (1988) is at the very top of that list. Proven by the fact i've seen it twice this year already, and watched it 3 times last year. It had everything, in fact, if i could see any movie on the big screen, it would be die hard without having to think twice.

So going into Live free or Die hard (called Die Hard 4.0 over here) i was somewhat nervous. I knew it wasn't going to be on the same level, but i have to say i was pleasntly suprised. It wasn't all that bad, it wasn't all that good either. Let's go through the good stuff shall we....

One aspect of the film i was worried about was the use of comedy and Justin Long's role in the movie. The comedy in the first one was well excuted and came from John Mclane's attitude towards the situation he was in. However i felt with the addition of justin long as a sidekick if you will, the comedy might turn out to be corny. In places it was, but hell, i got a kick out of it. Some of the moments with john trying to figure out recent technology was cool. Justin long's character was actually a great addition to the film and i liked the character more than i expected. On another good point, the cinematography was fantastic, especially during the somewhat over the top action scenes. the whole film managed to keep me on the edge of my seat and was a great movie going experience in that sense, much in the way Bourne Ultimatum was. The final scene was a highlight of the film, the way john get's himself out of the situation was great and really went back to no messing style of the first film.

On the negative side, you can tell that this film is mainly focused on "how big and over the top can we make this scene?" by that i mean here we have john mclane Vs harrier jump jet, John and a Car Vs a helicopter, john sliding down a broken bridge while a plane crashes after him, john ducking to avoid to cars flying towards him. It's certainly far removed from a fist fight that ends with both men tumbling down a flight of stairs. Some aspects of these over the top scenes did make me long for the good ol' days. I felt Maggie Q was great in this film but her character wasn't the best, she played it well. However the character itself was way over the top, reminded me of a computer game character, she survived falling down an elevator shaft in a car, as she was holding onto the car (as it was falling) she was still punching and kicking. She survived a full on hit with the car, it was a little mad. As was that crazy acrobatic guy who was slidding around when john was trying to shoot him, all said to me "hmm am i watching a film or a video game?"

that being said, there is enough here for that to be somewhat forgiven. It may just be me, comming from a...."die hard" die hard fan i can't help but compare it. What i'm tyring to say is this : if i read a positive review (not that this isn't) by someone who had NOT seen the original, i can totally relate to that. As there is a great film here that is above what you see usually these days in action movies, but when compared to die hard, it makes its faults more prominent.

All in all, its one of the better movies of the summer. I have issues with some of the more hyber bolic elements of the film, but i can also see this is an action movie that though not too the same feel as the original, still has a lot to get enjoyment from and is quite a bit better than the majority we see these days.

Norbit (2007)

It's movies like Norbit that make me jump to the defense of Adam Sandler. Sandler gets a lot of flack for going for the cruder comedies (Little Nicky, Chuck n' larry ect. ect.) however at least he mixes it up with serious roles (Punch Drunk Love, Spanglish, Reign Over Me) whereas Eddie Murhy's skills seem to be "comedy" based only. Actually he did have a serious role in the same year as norbit, oh actually an oscar nominated role in Dreamgirls. Many say that the reason he didn't get this award is because of the piece of crap that was norbit made people think "whoa is that who we nominated!?"

It's been a while since i saw Norbit, and because of that (and the lack of positive stuff to say about it) i'm gonna keep this short. Firstly, fat is not funny. so the film fails straight away there. Then and this really really annoyed me, this film had a catchphrase. I'm sorry but when a comedy movie has to rely on a repeated line, thats terrible. oh and to top that, its a stolen line. Rasputia says (nearly every 10 seconds) "how you doin'" of course made popular by TV Show Friends...so..stealing a line and saying it again and again is funny?? Another thing that still baffles me to this day, why the hell did Thandie Newton agree to do this film??! It's a shame to see some one as great as her wasted on this crap.

As i say, i've got nothing positive to say, offensive stereotypes, Eddie Murphy trying to be funny, stolen catchphrases, its a trainwreck.

Booking My Season Viewing...

Sorry about the break from reviews lately (planet terror being my last review) i should soon have a review of Beowulf and if i have enough time, American Gangster.

However in the meantime i would like to share something with you. You know when you hear a film critic or someone in the business talk about it being a "summer blockbuster" I've decided to do my season bookings of films i would see during the 4 seasons. Such as you get dramas around janurary time or in september after the summer blockbuster boom. So here is my "dream team" of season releases if you will :

Spring (March, April, May)

1. Sideways (2004)
2. Stand By Me (1985)
3. Forrest Gump (1994)
4. Bottle Rocket (1995)

Summer (June, July, August)

1. South Park : Bigger Longer & Uncut (1999)
2. Austin Powers (1997)
3. Toy Story (1995)
4. Die Hard With A Vengeance (1995)

Autumn (September, October, Nov)

1. Rushmore (1998)
2. Brotherhood (2004)
3. Saw (2004)
4. Almost Famous (2000)

Winter (December, January, and February)

1. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1994)
2. Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
3. Die Hard (1988)
4. Batman Returns (1992)

so there you have it

Top 5 Saw Traps.....

This is a list of my personal favourite traps, in terms of the visuals aswell as the general terror. Also taking into account the characters and the impact of the traps in some areas.


1. The Rack (Saw III)



I think for me the main reason this one is horrible to watch is that unlike majority of the others, the victim is in no way in control. For tim (victim of the trap) his fate is totally in Jeff's hands, as his body is slowly torn all sorts of ways. its that lack of control that is truely disturbing about "The Rack"

2. The Needle Pit (Saw II)



I think it's safe to say this is considered by many to be the best and most disturbing Saw trap, its very popular amongst the fans and though i have not placed it at the number one spot, i have no reason to disagreee that it is terrifying. Its a subtle trap in many ways that plays on our subconscious fear of the world around us and infection.

3. Venus Fly Trap ("Head Trap" Saw II)



The opening scene of Saw II and boy did it make an impact. A pretty simple idea, much like a mini iron maiden. However coupled with the key behind the eye, this had me on the edge of my seat.

4. Razorwire Maze (Saw)

[too graphic for a picture!]

A trap that is seen by only for moments, we mainly see the after math. a man is placed in a bundle of bardedwire and told to find a way out. in many ways, with the fact the door closes after a certain time, this kind of breaks jigsaws rules as there was little chance he could survive this.

5. Scalp Trap (Saw IV)



The only entry for Saw IV and for a top 5 thats pretty good. The reason the scalp / hair trap works is that compared to the elaborate set piece traps of Saw III and some of Saw IV, this is actually at its heart a simple yet painful trap, going back ot the days of Saw / Saw II.

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honorable mentions

The Hand Trap (Saw II)

Ok this was by far the closest to making it on the list, however one simple fact stops it. She didn't have to it, she had enough time to look at it think "oh shit i ain't gonna survive that
" and walk away, there was no way she was gonna make it throug this one and could of walked away.

Angel trap (Saw III)

WAY to elaborate. It looks scary and as a visual set piece is pretty shocking and effective. people say "why did she just tip the jar of acid" well she was suspended up and if the key had dropped it likely would of landed on the floor and she would of been screwed. good trap but way too big

Death Proof Music Video

Made it, enjoyed making it, hope you like

28 Days Later Music Video

I made this quick, don't be harsh!!

Planet Terror (2007)

"GRINDHOUSE PRESENTS" YES!! YES!! This can actually claim that. Because unlike Death Proof (which i did enjoy quite a bit) Planet Terror actually went all the way with the grindhouse style, not only in terms of the picture qaulity but in terms of the narrative which felt a lot more like a throway grindhouse popcorn flick.

I watched this from an American DVD i borrowed from a friend. Me and my brother sat down to watch this with a few beers and a pizza, i'd say the best way to view this film. Unlike Death Proof, Planet Terror doesn't take itself seriously, its a bit of gruesome fun. Saying that i do feel some moments were a little off, such as one involving a kid. Dr. Dakota Block who has run away from the infected area where the zombie ("Sickos") are and gone to her dads house with her son. She leaves her son in the car and gives him a gun to protect himself from the zombies. while she is away the camera follows her and we hear a gun shot, the kid had shot himself accidently. Though this type of stuff is usually in grindhouse films, it can't help but come off a bit weird and unneeded. Especially as its not really mentioned again. Some of the characters i didn't feel quite worked, such as Dakota Block and Abby (Naveen Andrews "Lost"). However i did enjoy the subplot of Dakota and her cheating on her husband, and the way that was used within the film was interesting.

Quentin Tarantino makes a appearence in a pretty needless scene, but hey. Bruce willis does an almost cameo though quite funny role (that bin laden stuff was classic). Actually the Osama bin laden scene is evidence of the throwaway fun style that planet terror was trying to create, and it did. The music score was also great, and really enagaging i love that main theme. on a personal level there were some aspects i didn't like, just because it reminded me of that 2005 film "slither" which i didn't like , but thats just me :) Rose McGowan was great as Cherry Darling, as was Freddy Rodríguez as Eli Wray.

All in all, its hard to rank this film, as its so much fun, its not the best film in the world by a good few miles, but, hell its very fun and thats all it was meant to be, and for that it was a success. I guess the best way to end this would be as follows :

Planet Terror = A Better "Grindhouse" film
Death Proof = A Better Film

I had fun at both, but i had more fun watching Planet Terror, so go with a few mates, throw logic out the window and enjoy.

Finding Nemo (2003)

Toy story i think will always remain my favourite Pixar film. With Cars & A Bugs Life (Antz Rules!!) being my least favourite. However due to recently watching Ratatouille i decided to rewatch the Pixar movie i had seen least recently, Finding Nemo.

Still buzzing of the recent Ratatouille, i was excited to rewatch Nemo and i have to say, what a film !

I had almost forgot how good this was. It has for me one of the key selling points of most pixar movies (bugs life & Cars aside) thats a real emotional core. The narrative of Marlin trying to find his son, combined with the script, animation and voice acting really manages to pull you in and believe that these fish are capable of these emotions. Thats what i love when pixar gets it right, it takes a very human emotion and attributes it to an animal, Toy or car (well not so muh car) and makes you care. In many ways actually out of the Pixar creations, this feels most like a classic disney narrative. Where as i felt Cars was very much a Kids movie, i feel Nemo is a family movie. By this i mean there is enough for both kids and adults to get something out of it. Theres some lessons to be learnt about parenthood and growing up, and its these qaulities that harp back to the classic ideologies of old Disney Animations. It starts with the death of what seemingly was going to become a main character, nemo's mother. It's something that anyone can relate to the fear or realisation of losing a parent or someone close to you.

The relationship between Marlin and his son Nemo is fantastic and always feels real. This film also maybe pixar's most consistantly funny, with Dory, the re-formed sharks and sufer dude turtles really adding to the laughs. Albert Brooks provides some of the best voice acting in a pixar movie and you really hear Marlin's worry and fear throughout all of his performance.

The film of course looks brilliant. I saw once on a documentary that they actually had the capabilities to make it look picture perfect, seriously no difference at all to real life and they actually opted for the option of making it slightly brighter and meagical, which i felt was a good choice. Again another factor that goes back to classic disney.

I have to mention my favourite scene , where Marlin is swimming after the boat that took Nemo, and we see him endlessly swimming frantically, with the fear on his face, without any real words, in the animation we know just what is going on, and it is a fantastic bit of work

All in all, Finding Nemo is amazing. Everything about it is epic, you really feel that with this pixar has come full circle. In many ways they have combined everything that makes a disney/pixar film work :

* Animals
* Real emotional narrative
* Human emotions within creatures
* Humans causing trouble for the animals
* consistantly funny
* Visuals

I would also like to mention the ending, which has a very hearfelt feel to it. With Nemo pixar has crafted something that should be remembered as a classic.

Favourite Movie Soundtracks

In my mind, one of the most important aspects of a movie is its soundtrack and overall use of music. Whether its the openening scene song which sets the tone or a key piece of music during a scene, music can make or break the tone and mood of the film or scene.

So with that being said heres a list of soundtracks i recommend you check out.

Jackie Brown


Key Tracks :

• Across 110th Street (Bobby Womack)
• Strawberry Letter 23 (The Brothers Johnson)
• Who Is He And What Is He to You? (Bill Withers)
• Street Life (Randy Crawford)
• Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time (The Delfonics)
• Midnight Confessions (The Grass Roots)

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Pulp Fiction

Key Tracks :

• Miserlou (Dick Dale & His Del-Tones)
• Let's Stay Together (Al Green)
• Son Of A Preacher Man (Dusty Springfield)
• Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon (Urge Overkill)
• Flowers On The Wall (The Statler Brothers)
• Since I First Met Y0u (The Robins)
• You Never Can Tell (Chuck Berry)

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Dumb & Dumber

Key Tracks:

• The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead (Crash Test Dummies / Ellen Reid)
• New Age Girl (Deadeye Dick)
• If You Don't Love Me (Pete Droge)
• Crash (The Primitives)
• Too Much of a Good Thing (Bret Reilly / Sons)
• Insomniac (Echobelly)

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The Royal Tenenbaums

Key Tracks :

• These Days (Nico)
• Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard (Paul Simon)
• Wigwam (Bob Dylon)
• Look At Me (John Lennon)
• Police & Thieves (The Clash)
• Judy Is A Punk (The Ramones)
• Needle In The Hay (Elliot Smith)

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Garden State

Key Tracks :

• Blue Eyes (Cary Brothers)
• Don't Panic (Coldplay)
• Let Go (Frou Frou)
• Fair (Remy Zero)
• The Only Living Boy In New York (Simon & Garfunkel)
• Caring Is Creepy (The Shins)
• New Slang (The Shins)
• In The Waiting Line (Zero 7)

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Rushmore

Key Tracks :

• Here Comes My Baby (Cat Stevens)
• The Wind (Cat Stevens)
• Ooh La La (Faces)
• Oh Yoko! (John Lennon)
• Nothin' in the World Can Stop Me Worryin' 'Bout That Girl (The Kinks)
• Making Time (The Creation)

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Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind

Key Tracks :

• Mr. Blue Sky (Electric Light Orchestra)
• Theme (Jon Brion)
• Light & Day (The Polyphonic Spree)
• It's the Sun (The Polyphonic Spree)
• Wada Na Tod (Lata Mangeshkar)
• Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometimes (Beck)
• Something (The Willowz)

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MORE COMMING SOON

Ratatouille (2007)

*bows* we're not worthy, we're not worthy! ok, thats done now. Last year's pixar effort, Cars, wasn't my cup of tea. I felt it, though technically fantastic, lacked any emotional level, any level of connection for the audience. I'm not taking my words back either, though given the qaulity of Ratatouille i may have to rewatch Cars incase i missed something!

Before i start the review on Ratatouille i have to mention the short that came on before it, Lifted. That's why Pixar are so good, not only do you get a feature length film, you get a short film to the qaulity of the feature. Lifted is no expection, a funny and fun short film that made me laugh all the way through and set the tone and mood for the enjoyment of the feature brilliantly.

Ratatouille is the story of Remy a young rat living in the french countryside. A wannabe chef, though being a rat, this is a difficult conquest. When he gets seperated from his family, he ends up in paris. Inspired by the ghost of his cooking idea, Gusteau. Remy finds himself at his idol's restaurant. He spots Linguini a young man who is working at the restaurant as a garbage boy. Remy finds himself inside the restaurant, unable to resist using some of the incredients, he adds spices to a soup that linguini had made. The soup turns out to be a success, and linguini who can't cook teams with Remy to cook great food, while trying to keep the rat secret and win the heart of fellow chef Colette.

Like any pixar movie this film is a visual feast. One scene in which Remy is swept up in a drain pipe , then into the sewers is fantastic. The water effects, with the faultless looking water roaring and thrashing against the screen is a delight to watch. Then this is quickly followed by a sequence in which we follow Remy through the air vents and in between the walls of houses in paris. seeing him dodge mouse traps, running frantically, and we see glimpses of people living their lives in the rooms below, is brilliant and a joy to watch. All the food looks good enough to eat, and other aspects such as bottles and glass look flawless too. Theres a scene in which Linguini is asked to get rid of remy, when he is discovered in the kitchen. Linguini takes him to a near by channel that runs through paris. During this scene the visual effects really shine. fog and mist cover the paris sky and with faint gleering lights in the background, this scene above ll in terms of visuals, may be pixar's finest work.

In my cars review i mentioned the character of Mater, who i described as, and i quote :

" the character-less stereotype of dumb side kick in form of Mater"

and in the name of fairness, this is evident here aswell, this time taken by Remy's brother Emile. There is a certain qaulity that will sell toys as he has a lot of the light-cruder jokes (burps and such) though not to the degree of mater, this character annoyed me ever so slightly. Also if we're on the subject of similarities with Cars, we arrive at Remy's dad, Django. Much like Doc Huson in Cars, Django offers advice to the main character, who much like Lightning Mcqueen, declines his advice. However i guess most pixar movies have this convention...wait, so should i take back my comments about cars? No, and why? because Ratatouille has one defining factor that seperates it, Collette.

The love story between Collette and Linguini is great, it feels real and has ups and downs even during its 1hr and a half run time. You really feel for linguini because you can tell he's trying and working hard at his job and really cares for Collette But what made me connect to it more than cars??...They're HUMANS! (nothing against automobile love, go for it!)

All in all, pixar is back on form. a heartfelt film, that along with lots of likeable characters, proves that, they can get back on the horse after a slip up. All hail pixar for they're contributions to not only animation, but film.

AMERICAN GANGSTER- Full Trailer

Looks amazing

A New Era For Movies & Games

Hey

I'd like to take this time to mention another blog, "Movie&Game". Run by a friend of mine, Coopey, It's a new blog that will feature movie news, video game news and reviews. I'll hopefully be thorwing my two cents in here and there on the stories. We hope to be both writting on both sites, so you may see stories from me on his site or reviews on here from him to form a great movie blogging experience! Coopey has a great knowledge and view on film, so keep up with his posts!

so please check out:

http://andycool-moviegame.blogspot.com/

Saw IV (2007)

Saw IV basically apitimises why i don't give grades. Much of my review style is less of me reviewing a movie, more of me ranting and trying to figure out just what i thought about it, a lot of which is discovered there and then during the writing process. Then i look back and hopefully it matches my true thoughts while be entertaining at the same time, shall we go for it? Let's go to work

I've made no attempt in the past to cover up my love for the saw series. Many people disagree but i find the saw franchise one of the most refreshing film series' to come out of the film industry in a long time, horror or otherwise. Saw 1 was a subtle yet daring film that really made you think. Saw 2 was yes, more mainstream, but still had the ability to craft a fantastic horror that kept you guessing. Saw III was possibly far fetched at times, but , was a nice way to finish the series with a great feeling of finality.......oh wait....damn.

So it's not over yet. Part of me is happy, part of me has Nightmare on elm street 300000 running in my mind. Anyway, last year (when i was in my full Saw loving mode) i really wanted to see Saw III at the cinema, but didn't. So Saw IV was my first experience of Saw in the cinema. and i was hyped, was it mis-placed?

yes and no. There is deffinatly a sense that the traps may have gone too far, both in their quantity and lack of qaulity. Lets face it, the majority of Saw fans just wanna see the traps, a sad fact, but hey, it has its..."charm". One of the films highlights was a solid performance from Lyriq Bent, who returned as Rigg, a SWAT team member, once a supporting player, now on centre stage. I felt he carried that responsiblity very welll. The film opens fairly well with an autopsy , but the whole first tape being found thing was a bit over the top. Plus, with the whole tape system you REALLY REALLY REALLY have to suspend your disbelief, which, at parts in this film, takes a LOT of suspending. This factor alone can take away from the films overall effect, and i guess, more than any of the others, this factor was present. For Example it all relies on the person following these instructions, what if he / she would of just got home and thron the tape in the bin!!? well, we wouldn't have much of a film i guess. Some acting was a bit off, but that i guess you have to expect from horrors (but should you have to ?). It at times plays like this - Trap - Trap - Trap - Trap - Tape - Trap - Tape - Trap - Jigsaw doll turns up - Trap ect. ect. However though this plotline can get tiresome, i felt the majority of the victims were interesting enough to warrant there inclusion. Especially one of which, who has a connection to John (Saw / Jigsaw) before he starts on his ways and is the reason he started his "Games" (and is the victim of his first ever "game") Some of the backstory and flashbacks were actually pretty engaging, and helped to tell a lot about John's past life and what makes him do his work.

I also liked the way Rigg was being used, the traps and choices set for Rigg being used as a way to try and teach him john's way of thinking, which i thought was a nice touch. However, its just a new way of coating the same idea but giving it a lsightly new twist i guess. I found the payoff very disapointing, i'll let you make your mind up about that, but given the payoff in the first two (II especially) this fell so short......(WHO WAS THAT GUY!? I DON'T CARE...DAMN) just love in jokes, don't ya?. As for the traps and violence, the traps were ok, very gruesome, and look-away worthy thats for sure. What i didn't like was the way the film finished it gave a sense that this could go on forever, due to the bounderies (or lack of) of the story and narrative formation. A great performance from Tobin Bell as usual and for sure has to go down as one of the best horror villians by now.

All in all, I'd say, i was all in all, impressed. By that i mean it managed to be interesting enough, to keep my interest. However, there are some moments that make it by far the weakest Saw film, the payoff i thought was laughable, over use of same ideas, some of the traps, some of the characters. However, some of the apsects, makes it one of the better saw films. Tobin Bell fantastic, backstory to his character done better than in any of the other movies, character of Rigg and his overall task and choice. As i say this film has split my opinion and i'll wait for the DVD for a rewatch. What i can say though is, its better than i thought it would be, theres enough backstory there to keep it interesting, but at same time, theres enough bad acting, unoriginality and one lame ass payoff to make it a bad viewing experience.....

sorry Thats really the best i can do lol .... (rewatch time!)

Jackie Brown (1997)

After bursting onto the scene with almost post modern and deffinalty daring, Reservoir dogs, in 1992, Quentin Tarantino established himself as a serious player in modern american cinema. Then 2 years later he released what i consider to still be his best work, Pulp Fiction. Much like dogs, its fragmented timeline, violence, dialogue and direction proved that Dogs wasn't a fluke. It would be Christmas day 1997 when Tarantino would release his next film, Jackie Brown.

Jackie Brown, adapted from novel, Rum Punch by Elmore Leonard, seemed on odd choice for his next project. Tarantino had made a name for himself with his writting and the decision to work on a project written by some one else was a suprise. However, he found a way to balence Elmore's work with his own imput, in what turns out to be one of tarantino's most solid films.

By solid i mean, unlike Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction before it, which could be argued they were more style of substance, Jackie Brown derives its strength from its characters and lets them tell the story. With a great cast top to bottom including Samuel L Jackson, Pam Grier, Robert De Niro, Robert Forster, Michael Keaton and Bridget Fonda. Also more so than his previous films, its the subtleties within the characters that sells them. Whether its Fonda's laid back performance as sufer chick Melanie, or Robert De Niro playing a man who is released from prison, slowly getting used to life outside again. Another stand out performance coems from Michael Keaton, who shines in this. Samuel L Jackson is of course great, in possibly his most evil role. The soundtrack is also a key factor of this movie with blues and soul tracks adding alot of depth to the film.

It's narrative is far more linear than QT other films, telling the story for the most part in order. Some complained about this, and yes i can see where they are comming from, once a director, an autuer one such as Tarantino goes against his usual style, it may come as a shock . However if you are worried about this i ask you to try and ignore that and watch it for the great character study it is.

All in all, this is a fantastic work, though maybe not as daring or loud as his other films, its a subtle, well made movie that is a great lesson in story telling.

Death Proof (2007)

Any Quentin Tarantino movie sparks my interest. The news that he was working with Robert Rodriguez (From Dusk Till Dawn / Sin City) to create a double feature Grindhouse presentation was great news. Sadly due to under performing in US box office terms, the film was split from 2 movies back to back to two movies released on their own. I was very disappointed i wasn't going to get to see the Grindhouse experience. Slightly let down i still had high hopes for the experience of seeing a QT film in the cinema

Quentin Tarantino's homage to the grindhouse comes in form of Death Proof, and to be honest, its a mixed bag. Their is a sense of originality and style that always comes across in QT's work that cannot be denied and its no different here. Kurt Russell delivers a cool, calm, collected performance as Stunt Man Mike. Played with a slight self awareness of its core material (being a little over the top lets be honest) it adds a extra level to the film. The scene where he picks up his first victim, pam is very creepy and well pulled off. Its scary enough and provides some genuine shocks. This film is basically split into two parts following travels of 2 sets of women and their run-ins with Stunt Man Mike. Personally i found the first half much more compelling. Arlene, Shanna and Julia i felt i was more interested in their characters than the second group. With hints of Arlene's insecurity, Julia false confidence and Shana's fun loving attiude porvided some of the better wirtting in this film in terms of actual character development. Even a small moment in which julia calls pam "a skinny little bitch" even without knowing her as she's sitting at the bar, and arlene obivious jealousy when she sees pam talking to mike, adds a level of character to the film, an almost high school popular girls against the unpopular girl thing going on. The second group, consists of women who work within film (a character plot i found pretty smug) . Character development came here in form of pretty pointless stories told by the group about their past rather than any actual emotional level within them.

The second half however does contain the big car chase set piece, which is as people say, very engaging and thrilling. The cinetography is fantastic and keeps you on the edge of your seat, however i can't help but feel if i cared a bit more about the characters, i'd be a little more near the edge of my seat than i was. The character twist near the end was very well excuted and added greatly to the enjoyment of the overall film. I was suprised how well Quentin Tarantino took to the action / horror genre especially during the chase scenes as they are brilliantly directed.

However in the bounderies of Grindhouse this film can't help but fall short. Having seen Planet Terror recently i can say that this, well, its really a Grindhouse film. Planet terror went balls out (quite literally in parts.) on the grindhouse style. With not only dirt and burn effects but the overall picture looked tired and warn. However Death Proof was WAY too polished and at times felt like he forgot what tthis film was meant to be. it was like "damn i better throw in a slight line in the picture there" because rest of it is crisp clear with even stylistic black and white effects follwed by super bright colour. Bit of a let down when you think of Grindhouse style it was meant to be.

All in All there is a level of qaulity that cannot be denied, Kurt Russell is fantastic, as is the first group of ladies. The chase scenes are as thrilling as it gets and there are moments of shock and engaging characters. However, it does become wordy, it at times descends into a big "in joke". I wish QT had let go a little in terms of his film making and went along with grindhouse a little more (The entire second half is picture perfect..what?! ) . I do recommend, but not as much as i would of hoped. However, the fact that it lets down on the grindhouse style and that i feel QT just ended up making another QT movie, it's still a engaging watch for the most part and up there with the better films of this year

Superbad (2007)

The film industry is known for "New Waves" the french had it, American cinema had a new wave (highly inspired by the french though) then the UK so on and so on. It appears at the moment we are experiencing a new wave within comedy. This could be best described as a "network" of actors and directors, often friends, who are working, wrtitting and directing together to create a portfolio of work. It's quite clever and sneaky really as its just an easy way to create buzz and get people to see your film. well...take Superbad. Produced by 40 Year Old Virgin director Judd Apatow, and written by 40 year old virgin and Knocked up star Seth Rogan superbad can now be marketed as "a new film from creators of 40 Year old virgin" even though its not directed by him. Much in the way Tarantino was the producer of hostel and suddenly it was "Hostel, From Quentin Tarantino" even though he was merely one of the producers. Anyway this point, though meant in a slightly negative sense becomes pointless when you watch the movie because, sly marketing aside, it does what it says on the tin, and thats be F*cking hillarious.

Having watched 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up & Superbad i can safetly say they are some of the funniest films i have seen in a long while. Though they can be extremely crude (Superbad especially) they have a certain qaulity to them, they almost go back to the golden age of american comedy and deliver something that really challenges and bushes the bounderies. So many comedies of today seem pale, yet these films inject new life into the comedy scene.

Superbad Follows Seth (Jonah Hill), Evan (Michae Cera) & Fogell in their quest to "Get lucky". Along the way, Fogell is seperated from the group is befriended by two cops who he travels with on their duties. That storyline provides for most of the all out jokes, as some of the other plotlines are mixed with more emotional moments (though not that much mind you, not to degree of Knocked up). The cops played by Seth Rogan (Knocked up) and Bill Hader (you, Me & Dupree) are fantastically funny. Some people have complained about the addition of the cops saying they were too over the top in the way they acted. However though i can see where people may view it like that, i felt that manic homour and with the comedic delivery by both involved, for me, it added to the film. It also provided a great hook for the character of Fogell to be discovered further and the interaction between the 3 is hillarious at most part.

One of the biggest faults pointed in the direction of Superbad is its moral issues and its depiction of teenagers and teenage life. Yes this film is crude, very crude. I think there can be something said for a certain amount of negativity within its depiction of women aswell, but (and i may be scrapping the barrel of defense for this issue) but i feel its fairly even. Evan's storyline and his girl , Becca, is not a good representation of young women. She gets drunk alot, is seen as just wanting to have sex, so on and so on, so yes i can agree that is bad. However on the other storyline the roles are reversed where it is the guy (Seth - Jonaah Hill) who is made out to be the idiot. Where the girl he likes, Jules (Emma Stone) doesn't drink, smart and is in control of the situation, where Seth is made to look like the fool. So i feel you have some balence here but i guess that can be compromised a little by the ending (you'll see what i mean)

When i review a film i try to take it for what it is, or if it does what it says on the tin, and superbad is a comedy and all the moral issues aside, for me, it works as a comedy. in fact, not since Knocked up (theres a suprise) have i laughed so much in the cinema. The "Dick Montage" is quite possibly the single funniest thing i have seen and nearly fell out of my seat. Lines such as "if you stratch my back i'll scratch yours" - "well funny thing about my back is its on my penis"...crude yes, but hell whats life without laughter!?

All in all, this team of comedy writers, actors and directors are on a role, with 40 yr old virgin, knocked up and Superbad they are creating hillarious, on the edge, slightly controversial comedy movies that are a cut above what we are used to seeing.

Run, Fatboy, Run (2007)

When going into this movie a lot of the factors seem to point to a great film. on the acting front you had Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton, Dylan Moran and Hank Azaria, all have shown they can deliver the laughs. Then to top that you had David Schwimmer seating at the directors chair. He and Simon pegg have begun to form a union in film, having previously starred in "Big Nothing" which was a solid dark comedy. So i thought this film couldn't set a step wrong....

Boy, was i wrong. The first point i would like to bring up is that this is not a "Simon Pegg Production" written by American Michael Ian Black, this is not in the same mindset or frame that Simon Pegg / Edgar Wright films are. I knew this was the case before i saw the film but i still expected it to be fairly daring and entertaining, it wasn't. You can clearly tell this is an American story with American / hollywood studio ideologies attached to it. It's brutally predictable and clichéd to the point that you feel you're watching a step by step playbook on how to make a romantic comedy. It at times felt over sentimental and some of the side characters were way to one-dimensional and struggle to get a laugh. It was weird seeing these talented people try to get something funny out of this stale film. It ends how you would expect it to end and has all the narrative hooks you would expect from a film of this type without trying to be different

Right, i guess i better even this out a little. Lets talk good, though i may not talk for that long. It seemed to me that the funniest scenes stuck out. By that i mean, when it was actually trying to be funny and get genuine laughs, it felt it was refreshing from the lovey dovey slush the rest of the film was. The fight between Dennis (Pegg) and Gordon (Moran) was pretty well comedically executed. The several Cameos including David Walliams and Stephen Merchant work well. Though one of the main plus points is the soundtrack. It has a great soundtrack with a mix of current songs (Baby Fratelli - The Fratellis, Monkey Man - Amy Winehouse) or old clasics (Queen Bitch - David Bowie) and add life to a pretty stale comedy.

All in all, I felt this film didn't live up to its director or cast and overall gave in to hollywood conventions and fell short, quite short.

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

Going into The Bourne Ultimatum i had not seen any of the previous films. However saying that i couldn't help but build up an idea of the films in my mind. The mere mention of Matt Damon can't help but bring visions of wooden acting and mindless action, a stereotype yes. My idea of the Bourne series was "lots of chase scenes"...and yes, there was many chase scenes, but hell, i loved it.

Yes thats right. I was pleasantly suprised. The action was tense and gripping, and Matt Damon pulls in a pretty solid performance. The performances are one of the key factors of this movie, for a genre that is not particually deep in meaning, the acting performances here really add depth and give it a little more weight and credibility. David Strathairn is fantastic as sleasy Noah Vosen, who is on the search for Bourne. Paddy Considine pulls in a great performance also, and it is great to see him getting more big profile work (for another great Paddy Considine performance i also recomend "Dead Man's Shoes").

What really sold it for me was the lack of need to "suspend my disbelief", unlike fellow summer blockbuster Live Free Or Die Hard, Bourne seemed on a whole all in the context of reality and most of the action seemed possible. Matt Damon really captures this character and makes oyu feel for him. This being his highest profile performance since The Departed, he really shines here, as i felt he was out performed by leonardo dicaprio in the departed.

On the negative side, the camera shots during fight scenes are way too jumpy & jerky, not allowing for the fights to shine as much as they should. However though i disagree with choice of shooting methods during these scenes, the fights themselves are very well performed and planned out. I would say there are 2 key action scenes, Bourne guiding Simon (Paddy Considine) through the train station and the chase in madrid, both are engaging and thrilling. They are each quite long scenes and are given time to fully devolpe and are not rushed therefore allowing the suspension to build without rushing it or sacrificing qaulity.

All in all, this is at its heart a cat and mouse movie, but as far as they go, this is brilliant. Engaging action and qaulity performances make for what was for me personally, one of hte most thrilling and gripping cinema going experiences. Seeing it on the big screen may be a big part of its appeal for me i guess, it is one of those films that you have to see on the big screen really. Bourne Ultimatum for me, is as it stands, my second favourite film of 2007, below This Is England.

Hot Fuzz (2007)

Hot Fuzz had a lot to live up to. With the release of Shaun Of The Dead and their previous work in the TV series "Spaced" Pegg & Frost qucikly established themselves as key players in the british comedy scene. 3 years after Shaun Of The Dead we finally get the second big screen offering from the team in the form of Hot Fuzz. While Shaun Of The Dead parodied Zombie films, Hot fuzz takes a comedic look at, the often OTT Cop movies.

Claiming inspiration from films such as Bad Boys 2, Point break (haha my mate would kill me if i didn't mention that) Straw Dogs and The Wickerman. Thats the first point i would like to make. The varying inspirations really help give it depth. You can really enjoy it on two levels. Not only does it have great action moments (BB2,PB) it also has dept h and a mystery level (The Wickerman).

Pegg is fantastic in the lead role but for me, the show stealer is Timothy Dolton, who is brilliant as sleasy supermarket owner, Simon Skinner. I would also feel shamed not to mention the hillarious performances by Paddy Considine & Rafe Spall as "The Andys".

As many have stated , yes it is 20 mins to long, and could of done with a cut down. There are moments where some of the jokes come off a bit weak ("Yarp Yarp...Narp" or "No..No..Noooooo") . Some have also complained about the cinetograhpy, saying its too loud and distorting, though ican see their point, i personally don't mind as it adds an auteur twist on the direction and gives it its own mark.

All in all, few weak moments and the extra 20 mins aside, this is a hillarious movie, and a must see of 2007.

The Simpsons Movie (2007)

It's been a 18 year wait for this film. The simpsons quickly established its place in pop culture pretty much from its early days in 1989. Though its style changed often, the first few seasons being more emotional, then moving onto a mix of both, hitting its stride in the 4th season. As many people have stated the recent seasons have gone down in qaulity, by quite a bit. It became more manic, and the episodes became more and more hyberbolic, sadly sacrificing its qaulity.

Personally for me, it had got the point where going into this film, rather than comparing it to recent episodes, i went in with the South Park movie as my example to compare it too. South park movie not only succeeded as a tv-movie transfer, but it still remians one of finest comedy movies of any kind. Maybe it would of been best to go the way South Park did and release The Simpsons movie earlier, but they didn't so, in 2007 here it is and....

Its good. Yes, it is more like an extended *recent* episode, but i couldn't stop the Fanboy in me, being so happy just at seeing simpsons on the big screen. The addition of the pig worked and provided for some of the funniest moments. There were also some moments that strectched the PG rating, some worked, some didn't. A moment where homer gives the rioting crowd the finger is hillarious. Then of course the "Bart's willy" joke, that works in theory of how they set the joke up. having something cover it up untill the end , so in terms of set up and irony it works, but the decision to include it, can't help up come off as ood. However a scene in which homer is considering whether he should kiss the pig is very funny.

On negative side, the story of homer / marge fallout has been done many times before, the end scene, though well animated, is bit OTT. However on flipside, there are enough funny moments to make up for it , and spider-pig is genius.

All in all, this is a solid movie. Not as good as south park movie, not in the area of classic simpsons, but a fun movie that has enough for both adults and kids, a worthy attempt at a simpsons movie, given the recent episodes.

Cars (2006)

Pixar hit the scene with the fantastic Toy story that still holds up to recent CGI movies. Toy story looked great (and still does) but why toy story was successful is simple : it's a great film. Animation aside, the narrative, the lines, the characters all make for a top film. Thats what Pixar does so well, they start with the story and the animation is secondary. After churning out more great films (Monsters Inc, TS2, Incredibles) in 2006 pixar released Cars, another classic....right? has to be doesn't it?...No.

First off, the animation is FANTASTIC, and the film looks bright and appealing. However looks aren't everything. You have the usual "toy seller" character of Lightning McQueen , the character-less stereotype of dumb side kick in form of Mater and the love interest Sally Carrera . A moral message is tacked on in form of "big business = death of small towns" which really does seem tacked. It is used only to achieve narrative resolution for main character Lightning McQueen ("bring him down to earth")

However my main issue is what is lacking rather than what is there. Thats the human element. I found it hard to buy into cars living in their own world, and taking away the humans took away chance for interesting scenes (airport scene TS2, Nemo in dentist office) of humans getting in the way of the car's lives. Also the lack of human made it feel more of a kids movie. I wanted nothing more than at the end for the camera to pan out to reveal a kid playing with a toy car set, but didn't happen.

All in all, it may be the best looking Pixar movie, its the loudest and the races were well animated and high energy. However lack of humans and tacked on moral narrative lets it down.

(i will say though i am looking forward to Ratatouille, roll on october)

I'll be back Very soon !!!

hey i'll be writting more reviews soon, as i'm seeing two big movies this week

for the return reviews expect ....

The Simpsons Movie
Transformers
Hot Fuzz
Ocean's 11
Ocean's 12
Ocean's 13
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Live Free or Die Hard
The Host

The Prestige (2006)

The Prestige tells the story of two rival magicians who are caught in a battle of One-upmanship and both become obsessed with discovering the secrets of the other's magic tricks.

The Prestige may be the strongest work from an already established director. Christopher Nolan with the prestige has taken a subject, maybe not obviously cinematic and turned it into a accomplished, slick film. While watching The Prestige i felt this sense of an "epic movie" (not to be confused with the crap comedy of this year) it had a certain style and way of story telling that felt different, in that it made you think and guess, which not many films bother to do anymore.

The performances are fantastic, Hugh Jackman i feel was a highlight, in the sense that i had only seen him as Wolverine before, so having this character with such depth, i was suprised how well he pulled it off. Bale also was great, especially begining to shine towards the end of the film when his character encounters issues and conflicts within his personal life. Michael Caine and Scarlett Johansson put in great supporting roles that give the film some extra depth.

One of my favourite aspects about the film was how it built tension, and the character study. How a lot of the tension was out of the complete greed of the two main characters. it's hard to explain without giving aspects away, but some of the way the tricks are acheived involve some very sinister methords. Such as use of doubles and their fate, is a very wellcomed "subplot" and adds to the tension of the film.

Some aspects of a sub story in which Hugh character meets a legendary magican called Tesla (played by David Bowie) seem a bit far fetched, but still interesting.

All in all, i will have to say it's quite hard to review this film , as it has a lot of twists and turns, so i have to be careful in what i say. However the final pay off is worth it, its fantastically done. Though even without the final pay off, it's a solid film. I really enjoyed the levels of issues going on (murder, adultery, Greed). That's what i loved, it was a great character study more than anything, these were both well studied, flawed characters that held my attention all way through. With only certain aspects of the Tesla subplot putting me off (was it going into sci fi??), overall this is a fantastic watch. It kept me on edge of my seat, guessing and suprised by the ending, it was an involving movie experience. One of the best of 2006, which was already a damn strong year.

The Science Of Sleep (2006)

Science of sleep is a film by Michel Gondry, director of Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind. Science of sleep follows the story of Stéphane Miroux who lands a job at a calender making firm. In doing so he moves into a near by apartment building. Here he meets Stéphanie, who he falls for. However Stéphane lives on a thin line between dreams and reality and what we get is a love story with a trippy twist.

I think enough has been said about the genius of Eternal sunshine that you only have to mention the name to those who have seen it and fond memories return. So as you can guess i went into this film with huge expectations, and it did not in any way... disappoint.

The first thing that really struck me was how funny it was. More so than eternal sunshine. This film has moments of laugh out loud humour. One example is a scene in which Stéphane is trying to retrieve a letter he sent through Stephanie's door with a coat hanger and we later see it from her view. also look out for Stephane's womanising boss Guy who provides a lot of the laughs. That's what i like about characters, they are very rich, almost cartoonish in their stlye and actions that it only adds a depth to the story and helps blur the line and show the strange reality of which Stephane exists in.

That leads me onto the dream scenes. Oh my god, i wish i had seen this at the cinema if only to watch these brilliant animations play out on the big screen. The dream scenes could vary. whether it was small detail like tap water turning into blue and white tissue paper, or on a larger scale such as a whole town in stop motion animation made out of carboard. The animation was a joyful mix of The Clangers, Beatles Yellow submarine and an L. S. Lowry painting. I have decided to include (at very bottom of the review) a clip and trailer to display what i mean by the animation and show how great it is.

It also displays very well the natural problems that arise in forming a relationship and aspects of Staphane's insecurities are well played out in the film. A lot of the funny moments come out of that and the very real interactions between the two. Such as Stephane's nervs causing him to say crude things in relation to Stephanie. Charlotte Gainsbourg who plays Stephanie puts in a brilliant performance here as does Gael García Bernal & Alain Chabat.

All in all, Science of sleep is every bit as endeering and brilliant as Eternal sunshine. Laugh out loud funny, mixed with the tragedies of love and beautiful imagination and animation that goes above and beyond anything in Eternal sunshine. See it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P0jQHUSWgM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GjjYHVj-mw

Mission: Impossible III (2006)

I wasn't in the mind to dismiss this film straight away, but given the bad reputation that both the film series and Tom Cruise has, it would be fair to go in with low expectations. I tried not too, trust me. It starts very well gripping you with a interrogation / torture scene of tom cruise (what a start!). With the added depth of character given by the fact we have the main character unable ot help the woman, Julia, that he loves, i thought "ok, this is good." then that bit stops.

ah. Now we cut to a cheesy party scene where Tom is walking around, smiling, laghing and making us wonder why he makes all that damn money. Of course this scene is used to lay the ground work to why he loves Julia, but if it would of meant avoiding this scene, i really didn't need to know why he cared for her.

The action scenes were ok, but we'd seen it all before. A scene in which we have a helicopter shooting at cruise on a bridge, is a little far fetched, but hey, quite fun. Though especially during the first action scene in the warehouse i found the cinetography disorientating. Quick cuts mixed with fast beating soundtrack make for an overall confusing experience. My fave action based scene though is when Cruise is Interrogating Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and to make him talk he lowers him through a open loadinng dock part of a plane, in mid air, that was impresive. oh wait did i mention Philip Seymour Hoffman?? well...

He steals the film, but thats no real suprise is it? his performance gives the film an undeserved sense of credibility. Too be honest he really does push this from a below average action film to something worth a look. Though Laurence fishburne and Billy Crudup also push their game up to full pulling in fine performances. I also enjoyed some of the darker tones, such as the brain implanted bomb, i thought was quite dark in that it is done when the character is drugged and it's something you can't get away from. Reminded me of the explosive collars in Battle Royale. If it could of skipped some of the more cheesy or generic moments of an action flick and kept a darker tone, i would of been more happy.

All in all a promising start turns into your average action flick with moments of hope brought in from time to time from supporting players and Philip Seymour Hoffman is no1 reason to watch this film, so i make that about 3 reasons, oh well, its a hollywood blockbuster right?

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)

Johnny Depp was already a pretty successful actor before the release of the first pirates film in 2003. However it was Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) that really launched depp in the mainstream and into the conscious of movie goers on a larger framework. I was first introduced to him through his collaborations with director Tim burton. In many ways actually Depp has always been a cult movie star choosing roles that go against the mainstream , Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, What's Eating Gilbert Grape & Sleepy hollow for example. so that's why it always comes a bit of suprise to think he's part of a franchise that is now in it's third movie.

The film opens with a pretty gripping (and suprisngly detailed for 12A) hanging scene (yes that's right), Family entertainment written all over it :) personally though i can see issues parents would have about it, i wellcomed that darker tone of the film and intro and felt it gave the film a little extra weight and credibility. Though it does seem more and more out of place as the movie goes a long as its not mentioned or a key part of the story, apart from it allows one line to make sense later. actually thats not the only dark scene, there are many moments including gun shots, toe snapping and nasy knife deaths that really do push the 12A to it's limit.

So yes darker tone worked, but maybe not the younger kids. Though it's strange because at the same time as being the darkest pirates movie, it was also probably the most funny, and whacky one. With high voiced pirate kings, monkeys, multiple jacks and rock crabs, adding to this fact. It is 2hrs and 50 mins so yes, it does feel at times as it drags, there's no avoiding that. i'm not evening saying it in a overly negative sense, but when you have to sit for 2hrs 50 mins, its going to drag. The action scenes are great, tension is very good too. The first big scene where Elizabeth Swann & Barbossa meet with Captain Sao Feng. With acting of Yun-Fat Chow stealing the scene it makesfor what is a pretty gripping moment in the film.

On negative side, Character of Jack Sparrow, though good, i didn't find as good as he has been. I felt a lot of his appeal had faded. He had almost become a cartoon version of Jack Sparrow. Though what i did like was the way the film panned out. It's 30+ mins before Jack even appears on screen, i have to praise them for this. For a series basically built on Jack sparrow & Depps performance it takes a lot of faith in the narrative to hold him off for 30+ mins, and was a refreshing suprise. Also, like with the other pirates there are a lot of scenes of pirates explaining things that would seem stupid in any other context and theres A LOT of plot to explain and get through. Which doesn't add to the pace of the 2 hr 50 mins. Bloom & Knightley story is ok and done better than in the other films. In fact Bloom's character gets his best showing in this film and gives his character more depth, even if his acting lacks a whole lot of it.

All in All, my fave pirates next to Curse of Black Pearl. Darker, yet at times funnier than the previous films. it's no huge leap from the others, but its enough to give it a slight edge. Great action scenes, and even though narrative is slow, its still very watchable. In a scene where their ship falls down a huge waterfall and the screen is emersed in water, made me think "wow theres not many movies where you have a visual sight like this". I think for all the negative press it gets, it has made a very unusual and select genre successful again, and every film shows quite a bit of imagination. See this film, expect to yawn somewhere in the middle, but expect to be gripped later with great action scenes and visions of imagination and, well, fun.

Spider-man 3 (2007)

It's been a week and a day since i saw spider-man 3. The main reasons i waited untill i wrote this reivew are 2 fold.

1. I wasn't sure what to say

2. I wanted to gage the opinons of others and see how it did

I'm glad i did. The internet site IMDB is basically your one stop shop for all movies. They do a feature called "top 250" and it is a list of 250 "best" films, in terms of votes by users of the site. It's pretty loose and nearly anything can make it into the list and any big opening film usually makes it into top50 for at least a month or two. So imagine my shock when one of biggest hyped movies of the year, Spider-man 3, did NOT make it into this list. Not only that but currently holds a pretty low score of 6.8/10. Not taking into account, it's part of a major franchise and a summer blockbuster, i am so suprised that it did not feature. So the feedback must of been pretty bad to keep it from a list that any old movie can get into

and the feeback was bleak. Ok so here's my input. First off, i don't think it is as bad as people say it is. For instance, really apart from some storyplots its not far removed from Spider-man 1 or 2 so how come they are good but this isn't? Acting was fine for a comic book movie (or summer blockbuster for that matter). Plus did you see those special effects?? i mean the "birth" of Sandman, when he emerges and takes his first few steps only to crumble is one of most engaging things i have ever watched on the screen. If that is why this movie took so long to come out, to get the special effects done just for that shot, its worth every extra waited week. Sandman is in fact the best thing about this movie. That is not to say it doesn't have other highlights, it does. One of those is the comedy. Now i do NOT mean the "evil" "cocky" "EMO" peter scene, at all. what i am reffering to is a scene where peter meets MJ in a restaurant to ask her to marry him. He trusts the ring in the hands of the Maître d’ and the moments that follow are very funny. Also the character J. Jonah Jameson is also funny, and funnier than his two other performances. Venom is great once you see him but this brings me onto my first negative point....

You wait over half the movie (maybe more) to see full pure evil form of Venom and he keeps ripping his Venom "mask" (lack of better word) to reveal Eddie Brock (actor Topher Grace) 's face. Which seemed very harsh to an audience who i'm sure just wanted to see Venom. Majority of the harry stuff including a convenient placement of a butler who happens to explain to harry death of his father :) The MJ / Harry stuff also seems out of place and well, boring. the movie is also way too long.

Also theres one scene in which during his "evil" (aka EMO) stage peter strikes MJ to the floor. Now i'm sorry but if you are going to do that, shouldn't it at least be mentioned again in the film?? it isn't. She just seems to forget it.

There are issues, but it also features brilliant fight scenes, good comedy, interesting villians (Sandman mostly.). Maybe not quite spider-man 2, it is for sure too long but given amount of charatcer i guess this time was needed. I think people to some extent are just crapping on it because it has soe issues, but hell, it was fun right? had explosive fights? had a good villian and one great one? so i'm not complaining.

all in all, narrative overload is a problem, time is a problem, but action and the sandman more thna make up for it. see it, and enjoy it!