I have been to see a fair number of movies this year. I see plenty of movies most years truth be known. Some films make an impression and lodge themselves in my mind, a great many once seen, are also just as quickly forgotten.
This year, I have decided to record my movie going experiences. Having got that far, I thought I might as well put down a few opinions as well.
Roger Ebert and company certainly won’t be loosing any sleep, but here are my thoughts anyway. If you agree or feel that I am talking complete bollocks, then that is OK. Feel free to comment either way.
Date: 30 Sep 08
Movie: Mongol
Synopsis:
The film tells the story of Genghis Khan, concentrating on his early life and his role in creating the Mongol empire.
Opinion:
True to my word, it was off to the Penthouse Cinema and out with the chequebook this week, and as a result I am now $15 poorer ($22 if you if you include a rather nice latte and a pistachio slice).
More to the point, am I culturally richer?
Compared to the Mummy, certainly.
The movie was filmed in the areas where he would have lived and was a pleasure to look at, with endless stunning landscapes on view. The Mongolian tourist office must be well pleased.
In western culture Genghis Khan is portrayed in a negative light as a savage barbarian, so it was a pleasant surprise to see him shown in a much more positive light.
He grew up in harsh and lawless times and had a pretty traumatic childhood and early life, which would likely have hardened him and given him the resilience to handle his may set backs.
At least by the standard of the times, he is portrayed as a humane and wise leader.
I particularly liked the way his relationship with his wife, Borte was handled.
There were also some pretty good battle scenes, which kept me, if not Neena happy.
I am not sure about the historical accuracy of some of the events portrayed in the movie, particularly the scene were Borte rescues him from prison.
Apart from that, it was $15 well spent.
Rating: 7.5
Date: 16 Sep 08
Movie: The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Synopsis:
It’s a couple of weeks since I have seen this movie and I am struggling to remember any details of the plot. To be honest, I would have struggled to remember anything even if I had written something the second I left the theatre; it was kind of film. Suffice to say that it does have a plot of sorts – something to do with mummies and some evil Chinese dude trying to take over the world.
Starring Brendan Fraser, Jet Li and some other people.
Opinion:
I certainly lost a few brain cells watching this one, which is a bit of a problem, as I didn’t have that many to start with!
The Mummy is just a modern day B-movie, with all the required boxes dutifully ticked. On that basis it was successful enough, but it would have been nice to see just the faintest touch of originality or charm displayed. Alas, there was none.
To be honest I only have myself to blame for the above situation.
Back in July the Railto cinema closed down. Now Wellington has plenty of cinemas, but for me the Rialto was special, as it showed the sort of middle ground “arty” films that I tend to like, and on Tuesday’s the movies only cost $10. Being the tight bugger that I am, Tuesday night is movie night. Trouble is that the only other theatres in Wellington catering for skinflints, show only mainstream Hollywood movies – hence the Mummy.
I think in future I am either going to have to take up knitting on Tuesday evenings, or horror of horrors, get out the chequebook.
Rating: 7.5
Date: 03 Sep 08
Movie: Dark Knight
Movie: Dark Knight
Synopsis:
Batman and Harvey Dent (Two Face) do battle with an anarchistic psychopath called the Joker. Starring Christian Bale, Aaron Eckhart and Heath Ledger.
Opinion:
Not to put to fine a point on it, I have never been a fan of these kinds of movies, including the likes of Superman and Spiderman. Even as a lad I could never do the “suspension of reality” thing with superheroes.
The one exception to this rule has always been Batman, though I have no idea why. I loved the camp as a cucumber TV series with Adam West and Burt Ward and also the much darker comics.
Many years later came the first Batman franchise, which I thoroughly hated. The movies though they looked good were shallow and superficial exercises populated by “big name” actors doing their party turns as the over the top villains. To my mind the makers of the movies should have either made them camp and funny as per the TV show, or been true to the original comics and made it dark as hell. In true Hollywood fashion, they did neither.
It therefore came as a huge surprise to me that, Batman Begins; the first film in the new franchise was so good. It was as dark as I could have hoped for and gave our hero a credible back-story.
I am pleased to report that the Dark Knight follows on the good work. The actors are pretty well flawless, though Heath Ledger as the Joker steals the show; his performance is a nice way to remember this great actor.
For me the movie sets the benchmark for superhero movies, and sets it pretty high at that.
Rating: 9.0
Movie: Tropic Thunder
Synopsis:A group of star actors with big ego’s are in Vietnam shooting a war movie. For a number of reasons the shoot goes very wrong, and when they come up against some heavily armed drug dealers in the jungle, they are forced to stop acting and become real soldiers.
Starring Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jnr, Jack Black and Tom Cruise.
Co written and directed by Ben Stiller
Opinion:
Surprise, surprise a comedy, which was actually funny. Tropic Thunder was a real joy to watch and very clever to boot.
Robert Downey Jnr was especially good as a 5 time oscar winning white method actor playing a black man. Ever the perfectionist, he has his skin surgically darkened and refuses to come out of character under any circumstances, much to the disgust of one his “Booty Sweat” drinking fellow actors, who as it happens really is black.
The film was pretty over the top some of the time, in fact most of the time actually. The dialogue was great, if rather scatological and politically incorrect, which is fine by me; I particularly like the conversation between Ben and Robert about good actors not doing “the full retard”.
Of particular note, are the “spoof” movie trailers and adverts, as well as a really funny turn by Tom Cruise of all people, as a ruthless movie executive.
Rating: 9.0
Date: 29 Jul 08
Movie: X-Files: I Want To Believe
Synopsis:Mulder and Scully have both retired from the FBI with new careers as a bearded recluse and a doctor respectively. They are both persuaded to come out of retirement after an FBI agent disappears, and a paedophile priest with psychic visions claims to know where said agent is.
Opinion:
We were initially going to see the new Batman movie, but it was sold out and we went to see the X Files movie instead. This was no great hardship as I am a big X-Files fan, and think Scully is rather lovely. Mulder isn’t so bad either, if you are that way inclined.
I was expecting a more expansive X-Files, much like the first movie, but surprisingly the film was low key and low budget, and was more like an extended TV episode.
Truth be known, it would have worked better on the TV, but it was nice to see Mulder and Scully back together (in more ways than one) again. I give it a solid 6 out of 10, whereas Neena didn’t like the movie at all and has given it a very mean 4 out of 10.
Rating: 6.0
Date: 22 Jul 08
Movie: Mama Mia!
Synopsis:
A musical based on songs by Abba starring Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan and Colin Firth among others.
A girl is about to get married, so naturally she wants to be given away by her father. Trouble is that her mother has brought her up alone and she does not know who her father is. It turns out that her mother used to put herself about a bit and that there are three possible candidates, so the daughter, unbeknownst to her mum, invites all three of them to the wedding. Much singing and dancing ensues.
Opinion:
We went to see Mama Mia on “cheap Tuesday” at the Reading. I found the first 15 minutes or so incredibly shrill and hyperactive making the movie almost unwatchable. Thankfully things settled down after that. The film was relentlessly good-natured and the cast threw themselves into their roles with some abandon. It was like being hit over the head repeatedly with a large wet fish; you can take a few blows, but eventually you succumb. And succumb I did.
The music was great, so no surprises there. A number of the songs I had not heard before, and would guess they are some of the more obscure songs from the Abba songbook. Obscure or not, they were just as good as the well known ones.
The actors all seemed to have a good time. None of them were professional singers, which certainly showed as there were more than a few missed notes (take a bow Pierce Brosnan). This however, actually added to the charm of the movie.
To be honest the movie is a real “chick flick”, but I enjoyed it anyway.
Rating: 7.0
Date: 15 Jul 08
Movie: Get Smart
Synopsis:
A bumbling secret agent called Maxwell Smart teams up with the lovely, smart and highly competent agent 99. Together they work for CONTROL battling bad guys bent on world domination.
Opinion:
The movie is based on the old TV series, also called Get Smart.
Spy spoofs generally aren’t really my thing and have been done to death in recent years, notably with the Austin Powers franchise.
I therefore approached this film with a certain amount of trepidation rather than the open mind one should ideally take. Turns out I need not have worried as Get Smart was a very funny movie.
Not a masterpiece mind, just a great piece of entertainment that Hollywood, from time to time, does so well.
Being the mean bugger that I am I’m docking the film a few points. For me the ideal length for a comedy is 30 minutes – in my humble opinion most of the true greats of the genre are to be found on TV rather than the movie theatre. For a movie I would say the maximum, particularly one with quick fire gags like Get Smart, is no more than 90 minutes.
Around the 2 hour mark I found that both the jokes and Maxwell Smarts bumbling and incompetence were starting to get repetitive and consequently started to lose some interest (I knew pretty well what was coming up by this point). Keep it short, keep it sweet.
On the plus side, Anne Hathaway’s legs, and the rest of her in general gain the film a full point bringing the total up to a not ungenerous 7.5.
Rating: 7.5
Date: 13 Jul 08
Movie: African Odyssey
Synopsis:
Four kiwi lads decide to ride on motorbikes from Cape Town to London. One of them took a high definition camera with them, and African Odyssey is the result.
Opinion:
None of the guys had much experience with bikes, but in best kiwi tradition they just got on with it. All them had engaging personalities and showed a real interest in the varying landscapes and people they met.
The film quality was not up to Hollywood standards, but actually seemed to suit the low budget nature of the trip. The editing and soundtrack however, were of a high order.
Their journey was captivating and memorable. In its own low budget way, it was every bit as good as Long Way Round, and from me that is high praise indeed.
I loved the movie, and the buzz from the other punters at the (sold out) cinema indicated that I certainly wasn’t the only one.
Now where is that lonely planet guide.........?
Rating: 9.0
Date: 17 Jun 08
Movie: Brick Lane
Synopsis:
The story of a Bangladeshi woman called Nazneen who, as a 17-year-old girl, is sent to England for an arranged marriage with a much older man. This follows the death of her mother, and means leaving her much loved younger sister behind.
After leaving Bangladesh the story picks up with Nazneen in her thirties as a downtrodden mother of two girls, one of whom is a somewhat rebellious teenager.
Her husband, Chanu, is rather overweight, jovial, pompous and something of an underachiever.
A lack of money leads to her taking a job sowing together jeans from home. This leads her into contact with Karim, a handsome young man, who is only half her age. There is an immediate affinity between the two of them and they start an affair.
Nazneen has always dreamed of going back to Bangladesh to be with here sister, and eventually after the family scrapes the money together, this becomes a possibility.
The film charts Nazneen’s growth in confidence as a person and also coming to terms with her life in exile.
Opinion:
A slow burner this one.
Neena had read the book, which she had liked rather a lot - so off to the cinema it was for us.
It took a while for me to get into this movie, but somewhere around the halfway mark it all seemed to click, and I ending up being drawn into the story.
I could certainly identify, with living in exile and trying to find ones place in the world; I guess this theme will strike a chord with a great many people around the world.
The characters actions all rang true, and I felt the story had depth and subtlety. Nazneen’s husband, for instance, while certainly having a few failings was by no means a bad man and in his one way does his best for his family.
The acting was first rate, and I got a bit homesick myself after seeing the various shots, of what looked like, East London.
Rating: 7.0
Date: 10 Jun 03
Movie: Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull
Synopsis:
Set in the 50’s, Indiana and a young man with the unlikely name of Mutt search in Peru for an artifact called the crystal skull. Unfortunately, the evil soviets are also looking for it as well.
Opinion:
As I state in the introduction to my film review blog, some movies stick in the mind other are lost in the ether, never to be thought of again. Raiders of the Lost Ark, and to a lesser extent the other Indiana Jones movies are example of the former. They are examples of what Hollywood does best, and are wonderful pieces of escapist entertainment filled with great characters, exciting and inventive action - all served with a liberal dose of humour.
I am pleased to report, that with some fairly big reservations, that Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull is a worthy addition to the franchise. I sat in the cinema for the allotted 2hrs and was well entertained, which is what a Hollywood blockbuster is all about.
Harrison Ford certainly is looking a lot older these days, but from what I saw can still cut it with the younger dudes. I thought the addition of Shia LeBouf as Mutt was a good move. This could so easily and have been a disaster, but I thought Shia brought a lot of charm and attitude to his character and the chemistry between the two was excellent and allowed for plenty of quips regarding Indy’s age. Giving Indy a sidekick is also, arguably essential for the future of the franchise, particularly with Harrison Ford fast becoming an artifact himself.
It was also nice to see Karen Allen back.
On the demerit side, the suspension of disbelief that is required to watch any movie goes into overdrive on this one. What’s it with the aliens? I thought they were completely unnecessary, though just the sort of thing that Spielberg specialises in.
The flying saucer taking off from the jungle looked great, but I could have just easily have been watching an X Files movie!
While on the subject of special effects, most of them were of a high order, but one or two of them certainly weren’t. There was a model in particular of (I think) an Aztec temple in the jungle that looked liked it had been “knocked up” by John Noakes on Blue Peter, with Shep the dog as his assistant.
Despite the whinging of a deranged pom I still enjoyed the movie, and thought it was a top night out.
Rating: 7.0
The film reviews below originally started life in the Film 2008 section of my Glynn World Part Deux blog (http://glynnworldpartdeux.blogspot.com/).
Date: 05 Jun 08
Movie: Second Hand Wedding
Synopsis:
A woman and her man decide to get married. The trouble is that she doesn’t want her garage sale addicted mum turning the wedding into a “second hand” one. A comedy/drama.
Opinion:
I saw this one with my mate Neil, who came down from Martinborough for the day. Neil chose Second Hand Wedding. His choice was a bit of a surprise, as I was expecting to see a “guy” type movie. By this I mean tits, bums, guns and explosions – oh well there’s always next time.
The movie itself was made locally, and was shot up on the Kapiti Coast.
The film was distinctly low key, and was an amiable enough way to while away a few hours.
Rating: 5.5
Date: 02 Jun 08
Movie: In the Shadow of the Moon
Synopsis:
A documentary where the surviving members of NASA’s Apollo space program in the 60’s and 70’s tell their stories.
Opinion:
The film consisted of interviews with astronauts interspersed with archive NASA and other period footage shot during the various Apollo missions.
The one glaring omission in this film is the absence of Neil Armstrong, who as I understand it, declined to take part.
The astronauts are shot with the camera focused in real close. In some respects this isn’t very flattering as it shows clearly the ravages of time, but ultimately works wonderfully well as it makes them seem that much more human and real.
All of the astronauts featured were articulate, charming and had many stories and anecdotes to tell. Given their history the astronauts could easily have come across as arrogant and egotistical, but nothing could be further from the truth. They showed real humility and basically came across as a great bunch of guy’s.
The Apollo footage, much of which has never been seen before, has been digitally restored resulting in some stunning sequences.
In the Shadow of the Moon, is one of the very best documentaries I have ever seen; I found it moving, funny at times and above all, awe inspiring.
Rating: 9.5
Date: 27 May 08
Movie: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Synopsis:
True story about a French man called Bauby who becomes completely paralysed after suffering a stroke. Eventually Bauby learns to blink his right eye. He is able to communicate by blinking his eye when letters of the alphabet are spoken to him. By this means, letter-by-letter, he is able to write his memoir
Opinion:
This was a heart-wrenching story; something it could hardly fail to be, given the horrific situation Bauby finds himself in.
I wouldn’t say it was an uplifting movie, as there are no happy endings here, but the shear force of will of the human spirit shines through.
I found the movie hard to watch at times, and strangely wasn’t always as moved as I thought I should be. The exception being the scenes with Bauby’s father (Max von Sydow) which were outstanding and terribly affecting. I don’t know why this was the case. Maybe Bauby’s situation is so far removed from ones every day experience that it is difficult to relate to. I could certainly relate to Bauby’s fathers sense of grief and loss.
Rating: 6.5
Date: 20 May 08
Movie: I'm Not There
Synopsis:
The life and times of Bob Dylan.
Opinion:
I don’t as a rule like “biopics”, particularly when it comes to musicians. They always seem to follow the same formula. The subject, invariably grows from rags to riches, takes drugs, cheats on his wife, goes into rehab, finds religion and then ends up either dead or a revered icon (or both).
Much of the above could easily apply to Bob Dylan, whose life is the subject of the movie; I’m Not There.
Thankfully I’m Not There manages to cover the usual ground in an imaginative and highly original way, and in doing so avoids the usual pitfalls.
Bob Dylan has had many facets to his life and in order to represent these, the director, Todd Haynes, has used 6 different actors. The actors include Heath Ledger, Richard Gere and Cate Blanchett of all people.
All of the performances in the film were spot on, with Cate Blanchett, in particular really nailing her part.
The music, funnily enough, is fantastic.
On the downside; to get the most out of the film you certainly need to be a Bob Dylan fan, or at least familiar with his history. The section featuring Richard Gere, for instance, will make little sense for those unfamiliar with the story of Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid.
I am a fan of Bob, so I loved the movie.
Rating: 8.5
Date: 12 Apr 08
Movie: The War on Democracy
Synopsis:
A documentary by John Pilger which examines The USA’s role in destabilizing democratically elected governments in South America.
Opinion:
Very much preaching to the converted I guess, but the film paints a dismal picture of the United States attempts to protect its perceived interests in South America. This goal is achieved by engineering the fall of mostly democratically elected governments. All this while praising the merits of democracy. The hypocrisy is something to behold. There are many, many examples, but in particular the film charts the fall from power of Allende in Chile (military coup) and his replacement by the fascist Pinochet as well as a large section devoted to the Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez.
For someone who has a keen interest in human rights this will be nothing new. But the arguments put forth by John Pilger are marshaled effectively and in the end are pretty damning.
To my mind the USA is behaving like the colonial powers of old in amassing an empire and protecting its interests and exploiting resources by whatever means are required. In past times empires were built by invasion and subjugation. In the modern era, the above can be achieved by more subtle and insidious means. In many cases this involves covert action to destabilize regimes that are not conducive to US interests. This is achieved in various ways from funding and training opposition groups to direct military intervention (i.e. Granada and Panama).
In other indirect ways, most of us all play a part. The aim for most of the developed world, and for a pretty fair slice of the rest of the world, is to obtain and amass material wealth according to the US model. To my eyes this could be seen as a form of imperialism.
Even here in NZ, opposition, however minor, has its price. This countries declaration as a nuclear free zone has arguably cost it a free trade agreement, which by some estimates has cost the economy billions of dollars.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not bashing the USA as much as you might suppose, as most countries try to protect their own interests.
When so much power is concentrated in one country I guess the temptation is to throw ones weight around. With America now the only superpower there would appear to be precious few checks and balances left. Americas much vaunted democracy, certainly doesn’t seem to supply any.
It would be nice to think the worlds most powerful country would use its influence to genuinely promote democracy and allow alternative political views to flourish. Genuine democracies’s of whatever political persuasion I feel would have much in common with the USA and actually compliment its long-term interests.
Anyway, enough of that, and back to the film.
John Pilger is not as upfront and in your face as a certain Mr Moore, but in his own quite way, is at least as effective.
On the Negative side, the movie feels at times like it would be better suited to TV rather than cinema. Hugo Chavez was also given an easy ride (ruling by decree for over a year is not terribly democratic), which while understandable given the context of the film, is I feel, a mistake.
The documentary ends on a positive note, as in recent years a number of governments have been elected in South America which are more representative of local rather than American interests.
Rating: 8.0
Date: 18 Mar 08
Movie: Superbad (DVD)
Synopsis:
Starring Michael Cera, Jonah Hill and Christopher Mintz-Plasse
A sort of coming of age comedy, in the tradition of American Pie and Porky's.
Two best friends, Seth and Evan, are due to graduate from High School, before going on their separate ways to different colleges. An end of term party provides them with an opportunity to finally loose their virginity, and go out with a bang, so to speak.
They are rather unexpectedly invited to the party by a couple of hot girls, the catch being that they have to provide the booze. This provides them with the break they need, as one of their nerdish friends, Fogell, has a fake ID card that will allow them to buy the liquor. The ID name on the card is the rather unlikely one of McLovin.
The three friends attempt to buy alcohol with the ID card goes horribly wrong when the store gets robbed, and they become involved with two very irresponsible cops. Hilarity ensues.
Opinion:
I liked this movie.
The film has some great moments involving the Seth and Evan. It was really nice to see them develop as individuals during the movie, rather than stay as stereotypes. Their friendship and anxiety at loosing one another was rather touching. For me though, the film is stolen by Fogell as the lovable nerd who manages to live up to his fake ID tag of McLovin.
The two police officers also had some very funny moments.
Most of the scenes played out in the film had a nice element of realism. It was nice to see the boy's attitudes to the girls change from viewing them in a purely carnal light, to seeing them as real living breathing human beings.
The dialogue, for the most part, was great. A fair bit of it was pretty raunchy, but also realistic.
As I have said, I enjoyed the movie. I wouldn't say it was in quite the same league as American Pie. I certainly laughed more at that movie, which I consider to be a classic of the genre. A pretty good effort all the same
Rating: 7.0
Date: 11 Mar 08
Movie: Rescue Dawn
Synopsis:
The true story of Dieter Dengler (Christian Bale) a US Navy pilot who was shot down over Laos in 1966 (I think).
He is captured and tortured by the Vietcong, before being interned with two other Americans and four Asians in a POW in the middle of the jungle.
Dieter becomes determined to escape. The other prisoners have been captive for a number of years, and to varying degrees have become institutionalized or driven crazy by their capturers. With the sometimes-reluctant help of the other prisoners, Dieter and another inmate called Duane do indeed escape.
After escaping they are confronted with their true enemy – the jungle.
Opinion:
Boy was I glad to see this movie. This was the film I was supposed to see last week. That fateful evening the gods were against me, and I ended up seeing Death at a Funeral. The week’s choice was initially going to be a movie about Nelson Mandela, called Goodbye Bafana. Now I have a lot of time for Nelson, but the film had worthy but dull written all over it, and quite frankly I didn’t fancy it. At the last moment however, I noticed that Rescue Dawn was still showing. It was my choice of movie this week, so that settled that.
Good move as it turned out. Rescue Dawn was a fine movie, nicely played by the actors, well photographed and directed.
The characters motives and actions were realistic and driven by the situations they found themselves in rather than dictated by plot. The depiction of Dieter and Duane’s journey through the jungle was very well done. The way the two guys bonded and looked after each other in their adversity seemed authentic to me and at times moving. This I suspect was helped no end by the fact that the movie was shot on location in the jungle. I could well imagine, that given the conditions that the filming took place in, that the pain and suffering portrayed by the actors was pretty real.
The last 10 minutes or so of the movie were perhaps a little sentimental for my tastes. But I don’t really begrudge them that, as in the end, Dieters escape was truly heroic and something well worth celebrating.
Rating: 8.0
Date: 04 Mar 08
Movie: Death at a Funeral
Synopsis:
A much-loved dad dies. His son arranges a funeral for his old man. An unfortunate series of events involving hallucinogenic pills and a dwarf causes things to go horribly wrong.
Opinion:
Where do I start with this one? The purpose of a comedy is to make one laugh. In 1hr and 55 minutes I managed barely a single chuckle, let alone a guffaw. I am not a big fan of farces (which the film is in more ways than one), so it was always on a sticky wicket. But even by the standards of the genre, I felt this was a poor effort. The film bears some resemblance to Four Weddings and a Funeral, both in plot, setting and name. The latter film however, was well written, and played with considerable charm by the actors involved. Death at the Funeral has none of these attributes, and was lame on pretty well every level. And don’t get me started on the music.
The movie has had some OK, if mixed reviews, and Neena rather liked it. I was I admit, feeling a tad “grouchy” this particular evening, but even on a good day, I doubt it would have got more than 3 or 4 out of 10.
Rating: 2.0
Date: 26 Feb 08
Movie: There will be Blood
Synopsis:
The story of an oil prospector called Daniel Plainview, who, using skill and cunning makes himself very rich indeed. In doing so he makes a life long enemy of the local evangelical preacher (Dano).
Not without charm, Daniel is a mean spirited man with no friends or close associates. Even his adopted son, who is the only person he loves, is used as a means to further his ends.
The film charts Daniels life and eventual decent into madness. It also acts as a comment on the influence of oil and religion on American history.
Opinion:
To be honest, the film was a little disappointing. The two main characters played by Daniel Day Lewis and Paul Dano were largely unsympathetic. For me at least, it helps if I can relate to at least one character in the movie. I think for this reason, I just didn't connect with the film, which spoiled my enjoyment somewhat.
The other problem for me was the acting. The acting from both leads, while very good, was to "showy" for me. Every year most Hollywood studios make at least one "Oscar" type movie. That is, movies that are tailored to appeal to the sort of people that belong to the Oscar Academy. Prerequisites include excessive length, worthy story, epic nature and the aforementioned "showy" acting.
There Will Be Blood has all of the above, as does for instance, Atonement. In this case it has paid of, as Daniel Day Lewis has indeed won the best actor award. If I had anything to do with it, he wouldn't. My vote would have gone to Vigo Mortensen in Eastern Promises.
The movie was by no means bad. The story was interesting with many great set pieces. It also looked pretty good (though surely not good enough to win the best cinematography Oscar!), but just didn't involve me the way I hoped it would.
Rating: 6.5
Date: 19 Feb 08
Movie: Juno
Synopsis:
Starring Ellen Page. Juno is a witty and articulate 16-year-old girl who falls pregnant, courtesy of her dopey, but rather endearing boyfriend. She feels she isn't ready to raise a baby, but can't bring herself to have an abortion, so decides to adopt the baby out to a childless couple.
The film charts the way Juno deals with her pregnancy, her boyfriend and her developing relationship with the chosen adoptive couple.
Opinion:
Juno was a cracking movie. It was smart, funny and very touching. Juno was pretty well note perfect, from the excellent opening credits, until the very final scene.
The story unfolds in some unexpected ways, but ultimately resolves itself into what I thought was the right outcome.
You can tell within a few seconds that the movie wasn't made by a major Hollywood studio, but by a small independent one. The script is quirky and original with some cracking one-liners; it would never had made it past the committee stages of the big boys without "blanding down".
The performance from the actress who plays Juno is stunning, and must surely be in the running for an Oscar. In fact the whole cast perform admirably, something the director should take a lot of credit for.
Pretty good soundtrack as well.
Rating: 9.5
Date: 14 Feb 08
Movie: Hostel (DVD)
Synopsis:
Two young Americans and their Icelandic friend are on a hedonistic tour of Europe. The aim it seems is to drink as much beer and bonk as many women as they can.
A guy in Amsterdam tells the boys about a Hostel in Slovakia where the women will do absolutely anything, so of there they go.
It turns out that the Hostel is used to lure victims, who when they get there are drugged. Incapacitated, they are taken to a hellish warehouse where they are tortured to death by paying customers.
Given their reputation around the world, customers pay extra to torture Americans!
Opinion:
If you like your gore raw, you will love this. Fortunately I do.
The first half of the movie is full of naked women and soft-core porn. I am usually all in favour of the above, but truth be known it got rather boring after a while.
The real meat (and gristle) of the movie is in the second act. The gore and horror are very well done.
The first half of the film while necessary scene setting-wise, does let the film down somewhat, so hardly a masterpiece, but for what it is, it’s pretty good.
Rating: 6.0
Date: 12 Feb 08
Movie: No Country for Old Men
Synopsis:
Set in the bleak, but stunning border area of the USA and Mexico. The year is 1980 and a cowboy called Llewelyn is out poaching antelope in the desert. He stumbles across the scene of a bloody shoot out. A drug deal has gone horribly wrong. Llewelyn finds a large sum of money, which he keeps, for his own. He is subsequently chased around by various very bad people, who are trying to retrieve said money. Chief among the bad guys is a cold-blooded killer (Anton) who is utterly devoid of humanity. His haircut is even worse. It is up to the disillusioned and dispirited local sheriff (Tom Bell) to sort out the mess. Stars Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem and Tommy Lee Jones.
Opinion:
Praise the lord; the Coen brothers are back on form.
I thought No Country For Old Men was a wonderful movie, certainly the best thing I have seen so far this year. In its simplest form it is a thriller come chase movie. But far more than that, it is a character study on the evil in human nature. I liked the movies existential feel, in that neither good nor bad prevails and the indifference of fate. The acting, dialogue, photography and music were all first rate. Neena thought the film was a little slow, which for many people will be a valid point. For me I like movies with a slow languid pace. It makes you think and concentrate that much more, and is ultimately more rewarding.
Rating: 9.5
Date: 05 Feb 08
Movie: Charlie Wilson’s War
Synopsis:
Playboy congressman with plenty of time on his hands, along with a CIA operative and wealthy socialite, successfully and covertly direct funds and weapons to the Mujahideen. This leads directly to the Russians withdrawing from Afghanistan and indirectly contributes to the fall of the Soviet Union. Stars Tom Hanks, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Julia Roberts.
Opinion:
An interesting story of a covert cold war victory for the good old USA against the Soviets in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, by neglecting the country after the soviet withdrawal, the region was allowed to fall into chaos. The power vacuum created led to the rise of the Taliban and arguably the horrible mess that the world now finds itself in.
The acting in this film is top-drawer stuff, particularly from Hoffman and Hanks. I am not a fan of Julia Roberts, but grudgingly admit that she also acquits herself well. The script was terrific, funny at times and always sharp.
The protagonists in the film are all well to the right politically, and fine though the movie was, I couldn’t really relate to these people. Maybe it is my inherent left wing bias coming through, but the film didn’t fully engage me the way I hoped it might.
Rating: 6.5
Date: 31 Jan 08
Movie: 30 Days of Night
Synopsis:
Vampires go to Alaska.
Opinion:
An excellent and original take on the vampire theme.
In its own way, the movie is as enjoyable as anything I have seen so far this year.
There was no real back-story, but from there on it was all-good. The characterisation was fine, better than it needs to be for this type of movie. The vampires were swift and vicious, with plenty gore and frights. A beer and a kebab afterwards rounded of a top night.
Rating: 8.5
Date: 29 Jan 08
Movie: Once
Synopsis:
Set in Dublin. A busker meets an eastern European woman. They form a short friendship and then go their separate ways. Two ships passing in the night.
Opinion:
A slight, but touching and charming story, told with the minimum of dialogue and much song. Both actors are musicians in real life, and damn good ones at that. Killer soundtrack.
Rating: 8.0
Date: 22 Jan 08
Movie: American Gangster
Synopsis:
True story concerning the rise and fall of the black American heroin dealer Frank Lucas.
Opinion:
Starring Denzil Washington and Russell Crowe. Really good story, well told and acted. 70’s America well created, with some pretty snazzy clothes on display. A bit long at just under 3 hours.
Rating: 8.0
Date: 15 Jan 08
Movie: I am Legend
Synopsis: Last man in the world battles scary night creatures.
Opinion:
Interesting and creepy at times, a good piece of Hollywood escapism. Will Smith acquitted himself well and I loved the dog. Variable CGI and a tagged on happy ending detract.
Rating: 7.5
Date: 08 Jan 08
Movie: The Kite Runner
Synopsis: Two Afghan Boys. One betrays friendship and makes amends years later.
Opinion:
Pretty good story, good acting. Spoiled just a little by out of character (action) rescue of orphan and plot coincidences. Overall, a good night out.
Rating: 8.5
