TRON: LEGACY (22 minute preview)

Wow. just wow.

this was an exclusive preview of the new Tron film due for release in december. and boy does it look amazing.

most of the scenes are extended pieces we have seen clips from the trailer, and the first scene we see is a non special effect piece where we see Flynns son go back to the arcade. All ok, nothing to wet your pants about.

then they unleash the good stuff. special effect wizadry and sublime 3D. the virtual set looks stunning, but still seems relevant to the computer sets of the original. it is all just so slick and smooth and immersive.

the one thing that hit me the most as i sat in the cinema, was the soundtrack. a stunning thumping, visceral musical score by Daft Punk thumps through your veins as you watch the stunning images on screen.

this will be sensory indulgence the like we have not seen since Avatar, and i for one cant wait.

5 stars

Walking Dead Pilot Episode

Why am I reviewing a tv show you may ask... because Shawshank Frank Darabont not only directed the first episode but also penned the adaption to screen for the whole season. Not seen Shawshank Redemption? How about the Mist? The Green Mile? And this guy is doing a tv show now? An awesome ongoing zombie tv show?!
Starting out as one of the best on going comics out there by Robert Kirkman "The Walking Dead" is already what in TV terms maybe around 7 seasons in, all of it gripping... I've been reading since early on. The first episode is very faithful (and proves what I've always been saying about comic adaptions, keep faithful and you'll make something good). Starring Andrew Lincoln from our own English shores (from Teachers fame) doing a bang up American accent. Everything is spot on... catch this show you'll be missing out if you don't. First season has 6 episodes... hopefully it will be renewed.

SAW 3D

AW GOD THIS WAS BAD! It was barely a movie, made very little sense and was very badly acted, it was as disgusting as it could be. There was very little point in even having the traps to get out of in this film as there was no hoping in surviving one. Also fairly confused by having missed out out Saw 4-6, not saying I didn't understand what was going on... it was just really badly delivered... it is a crappy 3d film making a cheap buck for Halloween, which also managed to shit all over the original Saw (which would have been remembered as a classic if they just had left it as one film)... won't say anymore and ruin the twist in case you actually end up watching this piece of shit... 0 Stars

Burke & Hare, RED

I'm a fan of Simon Pegg.. liked Jessica Hynes sharing screen time with Simon Pegg again (bring back SPACED!)... maybe not overly won over by Andy Serkis yet,I'm in love with Isla Fisher. I didn't like this film. It seemed to have LOADS of cameos for the sake of it. Burke & Hare are down on their luck, until they find out they can make loads of money by selling dead bodies... and when they can't find any more easily... they start making dead bodies to sell. Could have been quite good, it wasn't. 2 1/2 stars.

RED was definitely a great ensemble piece. Similar to the Expendables, all old actors (altho not action stars except maybe Bruce) come out of retirement because someone is trying to kill them. But they are Retired Extremely Dangerous. The good difference between this and the Expendables is that the acting is very high class with the likes of Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich, Bruce Willis, Brian Cox and Helen Mirren. Has great pace, doesn't introduce everyone at once and can be pretty funny at times. 4 Stars.

Easy A

Basically this is a teen comedy with intelligence.

if you're expecting an American Pie rom-com with gross out toilet humour, then i think you'll be disappointed. instead this is a character driven story that happens to be set in the world of an all american high school.

as with most american high school films you do get the sense that the actors playing the parts are supremely older than of high school age, but you kind of have to forget that and if you do you will find Emma Stone putting in a very solid performance as the lead girl Olive who basically spreads rumours about her sleeping with other guys in order to help said guys be more popular. A tale of nice girl does what she thinks is right but it all goes to far with emotional if not quite disastrous consequences.

A film about gossip and how stories can circulate and the complexities of the teen social structure this is. and tere a small parts for some heavyweight adult actors to, most noticeably Stanly Tucci and Patricia Clarkson who put in a comedic and unique performance as the parents of Olive.

it struck me as a similar film to clueless back in the 1990's that still stands out as one of the high school films that had a brain, and i hope this stands the test of time and stays in the memory as that did - it deserves to.

4 stars

RED

This is an amusing take on the action comedy genre.

the main premise of the film is to gain enjoyment and glee from a cast of old actors firing massive machine guns and killing people. these are actors we are more used to seeing in oscar winning films giving heavy weight performances (with the exception of Bruc Willis) and it is clearly good fun to see them let loose on an action comedy. It does however feel a slightly weak structure to base a whole film on. the smaller moments where we see Morgan Freeman slapping someone round the face are great, but the larger action set pieces where it involves them actively running seem a little unbelievable even with your suspension of disbelief still firmly in place.

John Malkovich steals the show as the slightly insane CIA old timer who was used for LSD testing back in the eighties, and who is clearly not all there. a great show with some film stealing dialogue and expressions.

a fairly simplistic plot involves the cast trying to clear their name from an old assignment, throw in a few strange love interests - one for Bruce Willis, with a young woman from a call centre and Helen Mirren and Brian Cox getting it on and you have an enjoyable if unsubtantial film.

a fun half term treat.

3 stars

The Social Network, Wall Street 2 and World's Greatest Dad

I am going to quiet few reviews of the first two, Film Nut Peter G did them already.

The Social Network, great film, loved seeing the story of how facebook came to be. Justin Timberlake finally showed some acting teeth & I approve of the new Spider-man. Jesse Eisenburg proves he's more than the guy they get when they can't afford Michael Cera... Gripping story. I personally felt sorry for Mark Zuckerburg by the end of it, while the friend I saw it with said he didn't feel bad for him at all and that he was an asshole start to finish. 4 1/2 stars!

Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps - It was interesting enough, quiet relevant considering the recession we're in or just out of or whatever is actually going on with all the money. Sam Witwicky is trying to save the world by being a stock brocker and funding something to create clean energy. Megatron comes out of jail, manages to trick Sam into thinking he's a good guy... guess what he isn't. It gets a bit boring and then everything turns out alright... 3 stars.

World's Greatest Dad - Robin Williams would say don't call it a come back... because unfortunately it isn't. This film is out of most cinemas now. Doubt maybe people have seen it, but it is very good. Robin Williams plays a failed writer, who teaches at a high school, his son dies via what looks like suicide, Robin becomes a hit with his dead sons fake diary. This is a very funny but also deep film. This film really needed more notice. 3 1/2 stars.

Despicable Me

What a wonderful, cutesy little film this is. Not quite as good as the Toy Story 3 or the Shreks from earlier this year, but still thoroughly entertaining.

The main reason it wasn't quite as good in my opinion is mainly quite simply that it wasnt as meant for me as Toy story was. there are adult themes in this film but it is a story and film geared towards a younger audience than me.

the main story revolves around a guy who has no friends or any love in his life, he is lonely and cares only about his work. He is slowly being eased out at work by a younger more ambitious colleague, into his life is introduced 3 children who over the course of the film change his views on life and make hi reassess what is most important... sound familiar? much like many Disney family movies this is a film plot that is stock beyond belief. However everything in this film is exaggerated beyond belief, to very funny conclusions. the man in question is a super villain living alongside "normal" humans. and the three kids are a trio of incredibly cute children, one of which - Agnes, is so cute she would melt solid steel.

a lovely family friendly jaunt, but none of the adult humour and themes that made Toy Story so appealing (to me anyhow).

4 stars

Vampires Suck

Well lets be honest, no one is expecting this to be a great film. and it isn't.

as i watched in a surprisingly busy cinema, there was not one audible laugh throughout the entire film.

the gags are incredibly weak and the makers seem to have not bothered with any set ups for any jokes.

Jenn Proske, who plays the lead does well enough, especially considering this is her first acting role since leaving university (according to imdb), unfortunately the script gives her nothing, and is reduced to imitating Kristen Stewarts teen angst tic, well observed and mildy amusing the first time, but after the thousandth time and attempting to hang a whole comedic performance on one small gag is pathetic.

i have no idea why this spoof film as with all other spoof films in the last ten or so years are just so bad. Looking back at the eighties with the likes of Airplane!, Naked Gun and Hot Shot films were brilliant and near classics of cinema - why now then, have spoof films become so amazingly poor. No one even expects them to be funny, audience or the makers it seem. I love the genre of spoof and hope one day they will return to be genuinely funny and observed films.

0 stars

Mr Nice

Rhys Ifans must have been pretty much born to play the role in this bio-pic of Howard Marks, who was apparently chief marajuna trafficker in the eighties.

unfortunately the aspect of casting a perfect leading man in your role does not a good film make. it is acted brilliantly, with Ifans perfect and a fantastic supporting cast in particular David Thewlis puts in a memorable show as a crazed IRA dissedent. and i feel i should mention Omid Djalili, who does a small role put played very well and not for laughs.

however, i do feel that not enough happens in the film and it does move forward as well as it should, just when the plot gets going for a bit it seems to stall again and returns to not much happening. and as for Chloe Sevigny, i have no idea what she is doing in this film whatseoever - and neither does she it seems.

so all in all a well acted film, but ultimately forgettable.

2 stars

The Social Network

There is something comforting watching a film about something you know about. And i, like 500 million other people across the globe, know about Facebook. maybe this is why i enjoyed the film, or maybe it is because it is a wonderfully crafted character piece - or most probably due to a combination of both.

Jesse is a joy to watch as Mark Zuckerberg, a complex anti-hero, just trying to do his best. A brilliant performance and as an audience you find yourself wanting to root for him and support him, but he is an anti-social and awkward character that he doesn't make it easy. It is a tribute to Eisenberg that he doesn't say much indeed no more than he needs to but he is able to draw you in and feel good or bad, for his character.

credit to to Andrew Garfield, i hadn't seen or really heard of him in anything apart from being announced as the next Spiderman, but he puts in a good strong solid supporting performance.

This film though, belongs to Fincher, He has grabbed hold of this story and made it fit perfectly for the screen. flitting from flashback to flashforward without ever losing the audience. With delicate flashes of inspiration, it keeps you interested and entertained whilst also carving out a brilliantly told story. An unbiased and dramatised look at the beggining of facebook could have turned into a confusing mess, but it has been fashioned into a manageable and enjoyable film, by a director back on the top of his game.

a great film of a great story.

4.5 stars

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

Oliver Stones first ever sequel and a timely film ready to reflect the world economic crises. i was expecting a powerhouse of a film, unfortunately this wasn't it.

now im not sure if it was due to my ignorance about the banking world and the world of investment banking, but i was pretty much lost for most of the the main plot. Considering the secondary plot was a fairly feeble one of Gordon Gekkos daughter and her relationship with her father this didn't make for great viewing for me.

And as for Shia LeBeouf. i have never liked him. He was ok and just about suited for his role in Transformers. as for the indy 4 debacle, don't get me started. I'm sure if he must be given roles by Hollywood directors that there are roles out there for him, but he was totally mis-cast in this instance and not once did i ever believe him.

2 Stars

Oliver Stone turns in a few visual and editing flairs as he does with his films, but on the whole the film was lost on me.

Buried

there was a lot of excitement about this film coming out. a one man film, and that one man was Ryan Reynolds. Now i for one, for whatever reason, wasn't too excited about this. not excited at all - i thought it'd be pretty boring.

how wrong i was - this is a terrific, energetic and gripping thriller. a claustrophobic and haunting piece. i do not consider myself claustrophobic, but for the first part of th film i felt trapped and uncomfortable, actively restless in the cinema and the thought crossed my mind about leaving. a tough watch, however the performance given by Reynolds starts to blister across the screen and you are gripped by his experience and and desperation.

a fantastic film and a jaw dropping performance from Reynolds, a very pleasant surprise.

4 stars

The Girl Who Played With Fire

This is brilliant stuff, most noticeably from the actress Nkomo Rapace, a quite simply brilliant and definitive Lisbeth Salandar. Dark, brooding and vulnerable and played with majestic ease.

The rest of the film is shot beautifully. It does resemble slightly a tv crime drama, but it is wonderfully acted and shot, subtle and slow cranking up drama and tension, and one can only hope that Hollywood tries to keep a bit of that when it comes blazing in with the remake. There a few moments where you question why certain things happen in the plot, having not read the novels I wouldn't know if that is a fault with the novelist or with the script writers trying to cut it down for a reasonable length for a film.

One other gripe with the film is that the last act is basically a set up for the third and final film and not a finale for itself. I understand the reasons for this and it is a dilemma - but the film makers failed to end this film properly in my opinion. However they have set up for the third and final film brilliantly.

4 stars

The Other Guys

A very funny if a little random film. The sort of film you would expect to see Will Ferrel in, not so much the sort of film you would expect to find Mark Wharlberg in. But he does a great job.

They play two hapless cops who want go make the big time, but they make many mistakes and find themselves the laughing stock of the police force.

There are some great moments, almost to the point of being surreal, characters opening up tangents for no particular reason then cutting straight back to the plot as if nothing has happened. In a similar way to how family guy uses it's comedy, but not to the same extent.

Some great set pieces and laugh out load moments but ultimately a fairly forgettable film offering up nothing to really savour to the comedy buddy cop genre, although all credit to the director Jay Roach being daring and trying out a few new things, but maybe not hitting the bullseye quite right.

3 stars