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Super 8 (2011)
Super 8?? I'll give it a 6!!
I heard so many things from the media and friends that had already watched the film that this movie was a cross between the 'goonies' and E.T.
Well I can tell you now that this film is nothing like the Goonies. For me the kids didn't have that same chemistry from what we saw in the goonies (Even though at times you feel that the film tries to take aspects of the goonies) and I doubt a group of young actors who come together will ever have that again as Spielberg and Donner hit gold there. However there were still some good acting performances, notably from Joel Courtney and Elle Fanning. But when the group were a whole together it just didn't seem to click. At times it was just not funny even though there was intended humour directed through riley Griffiths (Charlie who in the end just became completely annoying through his constant blubbering, spitting and constant tantrums) and Ryan Lee (Cary who just wanted to blow stuff up, which became tiresome after nearly two hours of watching). However I must say that Joel Courtney did have a rather striking resemblance to a young Sean Astin (Mikey from the goonies) To say the film is like E.T. is rather unfair as on a whole this film is nothing like E.T. However without giving much away there are only three aspects that are similar to E.T. The bike chases, the ending and that the film is staged in the late 70's and early 80's. To have this film staged in this era does sometimes give it an E.T. feel to things but I quite like the idea of the film being set then as it gives the film a type of authenticity.
Whilst watching this film you do feel a Spielberg presence and you can see very clearly some of his film influences such as those mentioned but for me at times and more notably 'close encounters of the 3rd kind' as when the story unfolds the audience find that there is a huge army presence who attempt to cover the truth from the locals. Sound familiar? Okay, forget about the films obvious influences and take it for what it is. This film is a children's adventure with a sci fi twist. At times it can be a little slow and cheesy, however it has great special effects and is on a whole enjoyable. However the ending did slightly ruin it for me and if there would of been an alternative one this film may of had a 7 or 8.
I'll give it 6/10.
Horrible Bosses (2011)
The film the hangover part 2 should of been!
Funniest film of the year no doubt and was a big surprise to how good it actually was. The 3 friends who decide it would be in their best interest to kill their bosses are fantastic together and brings a similar comradery or 'wolfpack' to the hangover. The way they bounce of each other is fantastic and i lost count on how many occasions the cinema audience burst out with uncontrollable laughter, young, old, female or male. Okay, so what they decide to do sounds completely evil and sinister but you find yourself rooting for the guys in a tale of many twists and turns.
Over here in the U.K Jason Bateman is the only one of the trio that many will recognise from recent roles in couples retreat or hancock or even far less recently in Teen Wolf two!! But the other guys Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis were brilliant and I can see only bigger things in store for both. Bateman is the straight man of the three and Day and Sudeikis just fight out to see who is deemed the comic relief of the three. Its very close too!!
The first 15-20 minutes was not the best of starts to a film and it may be fair to say that the three bosses are the weak points to film. Spacey who is an amazing actor just didn't seem to suit the role for me and wasn't believable. Farrell took a page out of Tom Cruise's book from Tropic Thunder but was still fairly funny and there was Aninston who plays nympho boss Dr Julia Harris. Who let's face it!! Was hot in this film. Really hot!!! I think all three were okay, its just that the three of Day, Bateman and Sudeikis totally outshone them.
The film did start to get much better when the three decided that killing their bosses may be a good idea. They begin plotting, carrying out research and following covert operations which lead to meeting other interesting characters along the way such as; A hilarious misunderstanding involving Ioan Gruffyd, An unusual character and name in Jamie Fox and a sat nav operator in Gregory.
Some classic, laugh out moments and for me this is easily film of the year so far...I had the same feeling coming out from watching this movie as I did when I watched hangover 1... So much fun and I highly recommend.
Monsters (2010)
Love story??
I hired this movie last night not knowing what to expect. I could of been forgiven for thinking that this was going to be another Cloverfield and if I did I could be forgiven considering the trailers. However think again, this is not your average monster sci-fi flick, it is a very humane film that is character driven with more suspense then action.
The story starts about 6 years after a NASA space probe coming back to earth with alien samples accidentally crashes in to the top half of Mexico and now has become the 'infected zone' where new alien creatures' now occupy the area. The military do there best to quarantine the area with daily battles of gunfire and air strikes but it seems to be constant losing battle due to the creatures ability to grow in numbers very quickly.
Two very different Americans who are in the south of Mexico must work together to try and get back to America where it is safe anyway possible. The shots of the film are beautiful and there is a realistic post-apocalyptic feel of the movie.
For me this is a love story based within a sci-fi setting not what I expected but still enjoyable.
Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)
Good Fun
Okay, the franchise is what it is. You must already be a fan of the games or previous films to understand the characters and the thin plot. However this film is visually beautiful and not short on genuine action.
I have been a fan of the games but not so much of the films. For me the first movie is only worth mentioning but since then this is easily the best. Okay there is not much character development and the family reunion of Chris and Claire Redfield is some what puzzling as there appears to be no case of 'Hi claire what have you been up to all these years'? Instead, this film is just action, action and more action and to be honest I did actually enjoy it. It was just 90 minutes of pure zombie and bad guy slaying. I imagine there was quite a bit of a budget spent on this film as there was some fantastic real scenery from airview of Canada, Northern America etc. And the special effects to help produce a scary and frightening post apocalyptic world are impressive.
don't expect too much of this film, it is cheesy, thin on the ground in terms of a real plot and character development but is enjoyable for its pure adrenlin fuelled rush!! Good stuff 7/10
Falling Skies: Live and Learn (2011)
Thought I had missed the first half of the series?
I have just seen the first 2 episodes of the new series falling skies. Well I didn't know that at the time? I thought I had stumbled across episodes 8 and 9. reason why i say that is because there is no real explanation to why the aliens attack? You also don't get to see the initial alien invasion. We are thrown into the story 6 months after the alien attack and it is the aftermath that we get to watch rather then see the white house been blown up or Big Ben destroyed by a hovering battle ship and its single beam of powerful light.
This is an interesting take really, and once I realised that I had to use my imagination of what the attack was like for the poor humans I now get to see how the few remaining survivors there are band together in their united struggle to find food, weapons, survivors and more importantly the answers on how to fight their 6 legged enemy back!!
Lots of politics going on too!! There is not only a war going on between humans and squids but humans are fighting humans in a survival of the fitness trend. Rag tag scavengers are killing for food and weapons. Sounds like a bit of a shame really considering the circumstances? But that's human nature for you! and there is also growing tension between the military and civilians who are now dubbed 'eaters' by their soldier protectors as they are a little bit bitter about all the grub that gets eaten. So a potential under class is developing already. Children are missing play time and the parents are squabbling on who should be squatting in the nice dead family's house :(
What also sounds interesting is that children are constantly been captured by the alien scum and 'harnassed' in a invasion of the body snatchers feel approach to things where if the alien parasite is forcefully removed from its host, the host will die!! sound familiar?
Lets look at what the facts are, or well I gather from the talkings of my fellow survivors; 1 There has been an unprovoked alien attack, they started in the big cities with an arial strike then placed millions of foot soldiers to take care of the rest - why? We don't know yet? 2 They have killed on site and rounded/captured humans in to concentration camps then nuked the camps for good measure 3 They like to 'harness' little kids 4 they respond and are attracted to thermal temperature and noise 5. They have 6 legs but wear mechanical suits to portray the image that they only have two? must be for the ladies as no one like a damp squid. 6. We don't know how to kill them yet but we are going to find out
Anyway, I must say, this has been enjoyable so far and I will continue to watch with much interest. don't think much of the special effects but the acting and 100's of extras who can be seen on one shot has been impressive. Noah Wiley is also an actor I have unfairly critised before actually witnessing what he is capable of. He's much better in this then that library dude!!!
The Basketball Diaries (1995)
Movie = 7/10 Acting = 10 out of 10
I watched this film recently with my girlfriend and several friends having not seen it since around the time when it first came out. I remember at the time thinking how powerful a performance Leonardo Dicaprio gave of Jim Carrol's real life character. The performance was so good I remember at the time telling friends who had recently seen Titanic, that they will be shocked by this performance as it proved he is one of the most versatile actors in cinema today and then.
Over the years I have told people I have met, you need to see this movie but not many have and it seems to have sneaked under the radar a little. Therefore when It was on television recently I made everyone watch this film. Everyone who did came back to me saying the same thing, 'wasn't leo good in it'!! The scenes involving Carrol begging his mother to let him into the apartment so he can ask for money to help feed his drug habit are shockingly powerful.
Its an amazing portrayal of the dangers of drug addiction and how it can effect young people who dabble with the dangers so quickly, turning their lives on its head with out them realising how it even happened. some strong messages in this film that many teenagers need to watch.
Having watched it again some years later, It has dated slightly in time but not only Leo is outstanding but Mark Whalberg shows that he too was showing potential back then 15 years ago or so. I have never been too sure of Whalberg in the past sometimes mixing natural acting ability in movies such as 'the fighter' or his interesting performance of the character police detective 'dignam' in the departed with shocking performances such as 'the happening or Planet of the Apes (where to be honest I don't blame him but the directors for poor casting). But Wharlberg in this movie shows genuine class, perhaps portraying a young man who had an adolecence pretty similar to his diaries character 'mickey'.
on a whole the film is a class act and hidden gem. A must see.
The Hangover Part II (2011)
not as good as the first
My girlfriend and I went to watch this movie last weekend having waited 4-5 weeks since its UK release date. We loved the first one and I can honestly say the first movie is funniest film I have ever seen. Before watching numero uno, I had no idea what the film was about, except the title of the movie was a slight give away. Having no idea of the plot, characters and whom was starring in the movie think helped in the surprise element of how good 1 actually was.
It was my attempt on number 2 to approach it in the same light however difficult it was from its constant trailers and marketing. However I made sure I didn't watch any trailers and when friends spoke about what they had seen before me I would put both hands over both ears and declare repetition of 'la, la, la, la la la' so no spoilers would reach me.
Now having seen part 2 I was surprised the film was good (not as good) but still some fantastic laugh out moments if not as many as part 1. Ed Helms for me steals the show with his amazing energy on screen and on this occasion Mr Chow played by ken jeong makes more of a contribution to the plot which is fun if not just a tad over the top.
Quick plot, Stu is getting married this time and is enforced to have a bachelor party of his own, however it is agreed that this would be of a much quieter affair. However, things don't actually go to plan. Its a fun packed joy ride of a film. i wont say anymore except, I need to be honest, you need to have seen the 1st movie to even consider watching this flick and it is purely designed for fans of the 1st.
6 or 7 out of 10?? Haven't made up my mind yet?