The Thing - 2011

Ok, so against my better judgement I went to see the prequel this morning. A bit of a difference from my cinemagoing experience yesterday. There were no bloody up and down teens.

This Thing has a lot to live up to because I love the 1982 version. I love the hokey special effects of the "original" especially the head turning over on itself and sprouting spider's legs, and of course the comment "you have got to be f*ing kidding me".

I was bored. I was so bored, I spent time writing my review as the movie was playing. I realise it is against the Mayo and Kermode code of conduct, but needs must.

The first thing I was thinking about let's see how many horror movie rules this one will break.

You find an alien encrusted in ice - what do you do? The right answer is you walk away and leave it. Your enterprising/pioneering spirit will get you killed.

So you ignore rule 1 and remove the alien from it's resting place, take a sample and the ice begins to melt. You also have a huge cast of characters. Everyone is expendable. Time to lose a few people. We need a manageable number, so that the audience can keep up and build some sort of rapport with those left.

Never travel solo - I mean really, have you people learned nothing. You will be dying very violently as well.

Confine the beast because just because you think it's dead, doesn't mean it is. Actually it never is. The idiot leader needs to be sacrificed first because you can then turn the other "sheep" around to your way of thinking very easily - i.e., get the hell out of there.

If you think a certain action is wrong, of course it is. Why would you want to go outside in the freezing cold to look for something that isn't human. Never go to frozen, cold places unless you're a penguin or a polar bear.

Alien cells are always stronger. Just because humans allegedly have brains does not mean they always exercise good judgement.

When you turn on each other, all is lost. The alien can just sit back, take up the popcorn and wait for you all to kill each other.

Why didn't our heroine freeze to death when she went outside to flag the helicopter down with no coat on?

The person giving you information is always deflecting and will always be one that has been infected.

When did it become acceptable to "kill the Americans?"

How do you go from paleontologist to leader/killer in six easy steps? Watch Alien movies and try to channel your inner Ripley.

If you were an alien, surely you could mutate into something that found it easier to get around rather than something that sort of walked on four hands.

My, that grenade that rolled about a million miles away would be very handy right now, wouldn't it?

And if you can believe it, the special effects are rubbish. I mean total, stupid garbage. The only scene that was even mildly interesting was when two men merged into one. It looked really painful, but that's it.

Final scenes - sequel anyone?

Hugo

Hugo is Martin Scorsese's tribute to film and filmmaking. It is ostensibily a children's movie, but I seriously think children and especially teenagers should be banned from this film. They just don't get it. My teenaged son, who went with me, thought it was a lovely looking film, and moderately interesting, but he got lost and didn't understand Hugo's motivation.

I, on the other hand, who has seen three period pieces in a row, saw from the opening frame that this was a craftsman's film. Paris in the 1920s is so detailed and beautiful that your eyes just eat up the scenery. Sometimes it is hard to focus on what is going on on screen for what is happening and just is, in the background.

Hugo (Asa Butterfield heartbreaking in the Boy In The Striped Pyjamas) has these beautiful, wonderous, innocent big eyes that are so expressive. He loses his father (Jude Law) and is taken into "care" by his uncle Claude (Ray Winstone) who mends clocks. Claude disappears, but Hugo continues to live in a Paris train station and mend the clocks. He has a book of his father's which details the automaton he is working on.

Hugo runs into Mr. Melies (Ben Kingsley) who sees the book and takes it away from him and proceeds to taunt Hugo with when he can have it back. Mr. Melies has a granddaughter Isabelle (Chloe Moretz - Hit Girl in Kick Ass - best role EVER) who helps Hugo.

It transpires that Mr. Melies used to direct films before WWI, but finds that he is left behind when soldiers who have seen the horrors of the world are not interested in his movies anymore. He gives up filmmaking and burns most of his sets, film stock, etc. It is heartbreaking.

What then follows is a loving journey tracing the birth of film.

Martin Scorsese has an interesting cast of characters including Sacha Baron Cohen as the Stationmaster with a mean Doberman, Emily Mortimer as the flower seller he is in love with. Madame Emily and Monsieur Frick also have a lovely subplot.

You know that it will all end happily, but the film doesn't half lead you on a merry dance to get there.

Take your children if you must, but better to leave them at home and go and see Hugo at an evening show in 2D - no need for 3D.

P.S. I've just listened to Kermode and Mayo's film reviews, and I may go and see Hugo again in 3D as it appears this is an integral part of the story.

The Awakening

I love the way I came to see The Awakening. I was probably going to see it anyway, but I put out a tweet which said My Week With Marilyn, Dream House or The Awakening, and wouldn't you know it, the director Nick Murphy tweeted me back and said guess which film I'd recommend. I thought well you can't get better than that, not only someone with a personal interest, but someone who takes time out of what must be a very busy schedule to interact with me (don't care about anyone else, it is all about ME).

Sat down in my usual seat in the multiplex - there are nine screens at my local world of cine and I have a specific seat that I like to sit in all of them - always in the back row. I also love when a movie doesn't attract children and more specifically teens. Whilst there is nothing wrong with a teen at a film, a gaggle of them always ensures stupidity like kicking the back of my chair.

I settled into The Awakening because that is what you do with a good period piece. You revel in the sumptuousness of another time and allow yourself to be transported. The cinematography is stunningly beautiful - it feels velvets, tweeds and oppression - of both mind and spirit. Maybe not oppression so much as a defeated spirit needing recovery time after WWI and the pandemic of the Spanish Flu. Everyone has lost at least one someone.

Rebecca Hall is Florence Cathcart who busts bogus charlatan ghost providers. Dominic West is a Latin teacher at a boys' boarding school who needs Florence's help because it appears that a boy has been scared to death by a recurring ghost at the school. Florence meets Maud the housekeeper and the boys who all appear suitably terrified.

Florence gets to diligently setting up her wonderful equipment - trip wires, cameras with magnesium flashes, etc. One boy, Tom, constantly seeks her out and they form a relationship of sorts. All sorts of weird things happen as you would expect - the most chilling an imaginative dollhouse scene which scared the bejesus out of me. One scene is shown over from different angles, each scarier than the last until we hurtle towards the conclusion.

What I did like about this cinematic directorial debut by Mr Murphy was the score (lush), sense of horror, it didn't collapse 2/3 way through the way most horror/terror movies do - you know ratchet up the tension to where you just can't take it anymore then descends into stupid chaos as if those involved did not have the courage of their convictions to just see it through or they decided ok enough of this psychological stuff, let's bring on the special effects. The audience is treated like adults - always a plus with me.

What I didn't like - the romance - such as it was because when that happened I thought all this shit is going down in the house and you have time for a bit of hanky panky - REALLY? Maybe that's the way it is with adults or maybe it's just characters in the movies. This is the time I would normally mentally leave the picture and think oh well valiant try, better luck next time. But I just let that go, mainly because it was so brief anyway. I am sure that part of the reason for it was a joint overcoming of years of pent up grief, and sometimes sex just relieves the tension.

I admit to getting a bit confused by the whole ending - for me it's a case of I know one person didn't survive, but was that the only one and a couple of other things, but as I tweeted Mr Murphy and said when it comes to Sky, I will figure it out because for me it needs a second viewing.

I also liked that I didn't figure the whole plot out in the first act. This is sadly becoming a recurring theme when I go to the cinema and must admit that it dulls my enjoyment of most films. But I have also pointed out many a time that maybe it's because I see far too many films, and I don't have the wonder of someone who goes to the cinema four times a year or so.

Rebecca Hall is never any less than good, and in this she has a fragile strength. She is fine as long as she can "science" away the ghosts, but as soon as this fails her, she starts to unravel. I liked her in Vicky Christina Barcelona far more than I should have.

Dominic West is actually a very good actor. I say that because you see him in The Wire and he is excellent, but you can't picture him in anything else because McNulty is a classic character, until you see him in something else and he's really good. Imelda Staunton is creepy as Maud just as she was as Dolores Umbridge in the HP films. Isaac Hempstead Wright (I love my Bran Stark - Game of Thrones - the best series ever) as Tom has that haunted look that you get with children in ghost stories. He is also gorgeous looking. The kids in ghost films are either hauntingly beautiful or interesting looking (ugly).

Nick Murphy knows I'll be watching his career from here on out, and I'll bet he's terrified - no really!

One and a half thumbs up for me.

Melancholia

The lastest Lars von Trier movie. Must admit LvT does nothing for me. I've not seen many of his films and the ones I have seen, I have never mad

e it all the way through. I thought Melancholia was going to be a chore or penance in the way The Tree of Life was. How wrong I was.

You have to relax into the pace which is very luxuriously moderated, like there is all the time in the world. Ironic really. Melancholia takes place in the five days before the end of the world. We are at Kirsten Dunst's (Justine) and Alexander Skarsgaard's (Michael) wedding reception when Kirsten notices a red star in the sky and asks her brother in law (Kiefer Sutherland) about it. He tells them that the star is doing a flyby, so will be in the Earth's orbit for a few days, then go on it's merry way.

To give you an idea of the pace, the wedding takes up the first 45 minutes of the movie. During this time, the characters are established. Kirsten seems a little "off" or "sideways" to put it

mildly. It transpires that she suffers from melancholia - a non specific form of depression

which she tries to describe to various family members, but the film evokes Kirsten's feelings very well. In the beginning it seems as if Kirsten is just an ungrateful, selfish, vain cow. John Hurt is Kirsten's eccentric father and Charlotte Rampling is the aggressive, self-centred mother - amazing that she hasn't completely lost her mind. Charlotte Gainsbourg is Justine's sister Claire who holds everything together in her family. She takes care of everyone in a very measured performance.

As we move away from the party, the red star Melancholia becomes an obsession. Unlike most disaster movies, this is psychological in nature so it centres only on Justine, Claire, Kiefer and their child. It becomes more and more claustrophobic as the tension grows and Melancholia comes nearer. After day 2, the power goes out, so there is no contact with the outside world and Kiefer doesn't want to worry Claire, so tells her that the planet will reach a peak then recede away from Earth. When Claire realises that this is not the case, she becomes survivalist seeking out other people, but by then it is too late and Justine doesn't help as

she thinks this is just fate.

The film is beautifully shot and crystal clear. All the performances are excellent, but Kirsten and Charlotte G stand out. Melancholia is 2 hours and 10 minutes which is just about right - any longer and I think we would have all started to feel suicidal as the mood infects the audience as well. It draws us all in and in the end, we want Melancholia to hit, so that we can have some release.

Super 8

Saw this with my 13 year old son.

It sort of worked for me and it didn't work for him at all. He thought it was boring.

Set in late 70s, certainly after StarWars, it was clearly JJ Abrams' homage to Steven Spielberg's ET and Close Encounters of the Third Kind plus others like the Goonies.

Very nostalgic, and if I didn't know it was a JJ Abrams movie, I would have thought it was directed by rather than produced by Steven.

A group of friends is making a movie over the summer, and are out filming one night when they see a train wreck which is swiftly followed by the army taking over the site and their town. It becomes very apparent that there is something very sinister out there that the army want to contain. This has been captured on the film.

There are some funny lines like "can I have my film developed in 24 hours" "no one can do that, the best I can do is three days on a rush". "What are you listening to?" "It's a walkman, you can listen to your cassettes." "People wandering around with personal stereos, it's the thin end of the wedge, you mark my words".

The teens in the screen looked at some of the things and said what is that, and you realise how far we have come in terms of technology.

If I had seen Super 8 in 1978, I would have thought it was amazing. Children these days are so blase about special effects. If it isn't fast and very pacy, they get bored. That doesn't bode well for movies in the future.

Elle Fanning literally burned up the screen when she was on it. She was amazing. Definitely one to watch!

Captain America: The First Avenger

Captain America has a very retro feel, not old fashioned, just retro. It evokes 1940s wartime really well. I loved the dirigibles in the London skies and the slightly muted colours and the deliciously demonic evil Red Skull who is too evil even for the Nazis.

Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is unfit for duty for the Army. He desperately wants to fight for his country. Dr Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) sees something more in him and Steve becomes a guinea pig in Project Rebirth which enables Steve to use his maximum human potential. It basically means that the good in you is magnified and the inverse is equally true.

What then follows is good guys fighting bad guys and a very interesting ending. You get all the usual suspects, and the continuity is great. I love the way Samuel L Jackson keeps turning up in cameos, cannot wait until The Avengers next year.

It was a very authentic adaptation, but it didn't emotionally engage me at all. I'm not a Captain America fan, but my 13 year old son seemed to like it well enough (his favourite is still Thor).

Please stay until after the end credits as you get another teaser for The Avengers featuring Nick Fury, Thor, Howard Stark, Hawkeye and Black Widow.

Tree Of Life

I have tried to write the review for Tree Of Life for a couple of weeks now. Well actually.....no I really haven’t, I tried for a couple of days, then gave up, now I’m coming back to it.

When the film was over, the first words out of my mouth were "Oh Thank God!" just a little too loudly!

I've now read a bit more about Terrence Malick and it seems that this was autobiographical or at least semi, in which case, he is trying to make sense of his youngest brother's death. TM had an overbearing father who sent his youngest son to Spain to study gutar with Segovia, who apparently was a legendary cruel taskmaster. TM's brother broke both his own hands and his father asked TM to go over to Spain to help youngest brother and TM refused. TM's father went over and returned with his youngest brother's body. Therefore TM wasn't there when his brother needed him most.

The first hour especially and indeed the entire film was visually stunning. It was like a perfect mood board to set up the story, but the film then just stalled. Just like that.

Didn't really matter whether story was linear or non, there really wasn't much being told here only implied. Give the audience its due, we tried, REALLY HARD to stick with it, and no one walked out which I know has happened in other screenings.

I quite accept we are all part of (a) tree(s) of life, and our place on that tree draws together the interdependence through the tree down to the roots and searching for a meaning of what happens to us through memories can be incredibly painful/daunting. The meaning of life might that in God’s grand plan, nothing matters much or one ripple creates a butterfly effect. You're here, then you're not, your people mourn, reflect, reminisce, get on with it or don’t.

But really, Terence Malick is well educated who makes lovely films and should have been able to finish off The Tree Of Life without having the audience scratch its collective bemused head and be pleased the 'ordeal' was over.

A woman in my screening asked me if I understood the meaning, and I just shrugged my shoulders, shook my head and thought here is another 2 1/2 hours of my life I will never get back. And that sucks!

Or maybe I’m just completely missing the point which is quite possible. In that case, nevermind!

Wild Target

Didn't get to see Letters to Juliet. I went instead to see the above.

It was a charming movie. I thought it was charming Saturday morning movie with Emily Blount, Bill Nighy and a very grown up looking Rupert Grint. Rupert Everett was also in it looking very grown up.

Story: Bill Nighy is a very accomplished assassin (his father gave him a Baretta for his seventh birthday). Emily Blount orchestrates art fraud against Rupert Everett, and he doesn't like it one bit. He hires Bill Nighy to kill Emily which he tries, then doesn't do. Rupert Grint gets caught up in this and even Rab C. Nesbitt turns up.

This is another film that makes London look absolutely stunning as it races around the city.

Bill Nighy's mother steals the show completely!

Shrek Forever After

I went to see it this morning in preview. I thought it was very good.

Shrek has a happy life and doesn't appreciate it. He then make a deal with Rumpelstiltskin to have a day where things were the way they used to be. Shrek's part of the bargain is that he has to give Rumpelstiltskin a day back from his childhood. Shrek says take whichever day you like...Rump takes the date of his birth, so if Shrek doesn't make Fiona fall in love with him by sunrise, he will cease to exist.

All the favourite characters back - Donkey, Puss (in need of WLR) without his boots, the Gingerbread Man, the Dragon (Donkey's Mrs.), Pinocchio, The Big Bad Wolf, The Three Little Pigs, etc. The use of music is great again. The kids will love it

It was in 3D, and again it didn't really make a difference to me.

Bring on Eclipse in previews next weekend, at least it isn't in 3D.

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

I loved it.

Bella still wants to become a sparkly vamp ASAP, whilst Edward and the Cullen family would like her to wait and experience some of life - ah the folly of youth!

Edward and Bella to and fro on when he will make her stone cold. The date is set for 13th August. Victoria (Dallas Bryce Howard not a patch on Rachelle Lefevre, the original flame-haired bloodsucker) is desperate for revenge because of James being ripped apart an bbqed in the Twilight. She creates an army of newborns who are very, very strong and bloodthirsty led by Riley Biers.

Meanwhile, back at Forks, Edward and Jacob (neck too long, but I still would *snaps out of reverie*) are trying to be all alpha male over Bella. Edward wants Bella to make an informed choice, and Jacob is eager for Bella to admit that she loves him. Bella for her part takes a much more active role in this film than she did in the other ones (thank goodness). Exploring repressed feelings for Jacob whilst at the same time becoming more and more sure that the choice she is about to make is the right one, I actually liked Bella for the first time.

This is all played against a disapproving father, the army getting stronger, cross-species cooperation, and great back stories (Rosalie, Jasper and the wolves).

The battle scene is very, very good. I love the way the vampires kill each other - it isn't all blood and guts. What I didn't realise in the second movie is that the wolves are soooooooo huge. When Jacob (with fur) stands next to Bella, you get an idea of the size, but you also get the complexities of the relationship.

There wasn't nearly enough of Esme this time, and that is a shame or much of the Cullens either except in very junior supporting roles. The exception to this is Jasper, who takes much more of the lead and trains the vampires and wolves to work together. I would happily see Alice have her own spin-off she is great.

The scenery of Washington state is lush. The contrast between the hot-blooded wolves and the cold-blooded vampires is very evident with the tanned skin, and the passion Jacob feels for Bella, along with the tensions brewing within the den of wolves. The Cullens are much more restrained.

The triangle is so well nuanced with the right amount of jokiness, rivalry and deep emotions. The scene where Edward turns Bella over to Jacob for protection by kissing her longer and deeper than normal and Jacob receives Bella by giving her a big bear, protective hug which is all done for the benefit of the other male.

The funniest moment is when Jacob tries to kiss Bella and she tries to punch him in his face, and winds up spraining her arm very badly.

This movie is 123 minutes long, and it certainly does feel like it. There are parts that dip and had me wondering such as being told in New Moon that Jasper was the newest vampire and therefore still the most vulnerable to the blood, and then in this one prove to be so wise and knowing especially once we see his backstory and realise that he isn't the youngest of the group, Emmett is. Bella sprains her arm and has it bandaged by Carlo, but not even a day later, she has no bandage on her hand when she is being hauled up to the campsite.

There were other little niggly bits as well, but none of it detracts from what I think is a fantastic, modern vampire/wolf battle of wills love story.

What makes this series is the lead actors - Jake, Edward and Bella play this absolutely straight and I feel that they have grown into the roles naturally.

Inception

I loved it. It is now my third favourite film of all time

It was very difficult to follow at the beginning. Reminded me a lot of Shutter Island (which I didn't like). What a cast of characters - Leo di Caprio, Tom Hardy "don't be afraid to dream a bit bigger darling", Ellen Page, Michael Caine, Marion Cottillard, Tom Berenger, Cillian Murphy, Lukas Haas and Pete Posthelthwaite.

Leonardo di Caprio specialises in taking secrets from people's dreams, but has a lot of secrets of his own. That is about all I can say before it starts to get really convoluted and goes down a maze. It was very atmospheric. The dream worlds were interesting, but not in a What Dreams May Come or Lovely Bones Way which was more surreal. More to come as I give it some proper thought.

The Karate Kid

I went to see this today, and didn't hold out much hope.

I was very pleasantly surprised.

Dre (Jaden Smith) and his mom Sherry (Taraji P. Henson) move from Detroit to Beijing for an unnamed transfer job. They wind up in a flat with Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) as the maintenance man.

Dre is bullied by a kung fu student Cheng whose master teaches them no pain, no weakness and no mercy. You can see where this is going. There is an ongoing struggle with Cheng. Dre is eventually trained by Mr. Han to fight Cheng in a Kung Fu competition.

It is very long at 139 minutes. It could have used a better editor.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice

We are in Florida at the moment and took the kids to see this.

We all really, really enjoyed it.

Nicolas Cage is Balthazar, who along with Horvath and Veronica were Merlin's apprentices until Horvath falls in with Morgana le Fay to betray Merlin. Morgana and Veronica get into a fight, and Veronica to save Balthazar takes Morgana's spirit into her own body and is imprisoned by a grimhold.

Long story short, Balthazar finds Dave (Jay Baruchel) as his apprentice to fight off Horvath and save Manhattan. There are homages to other movies - always love to see Star Wars references - "you don't need to see his faculty ID" "these are not the droids you are looking for".

The dancing mops scene from Fantasia is in there and is very good.

My kids are 12 and 15 and they enjoyed equally as much as I did.

Salt

Angelina Jolie's latest vehicle that Tom Cruise was supposed have the lead role in. I thought it was very solid entertainment. Ange was very competent and believable in the role of Evelyn Salt, who is accused of being a Russian spy by a Russian defector. She pleads her innocence, but is not believed.

Salt then escapes before she can be interrogated, and hokey, fun, rollercoaster mayhem ensues. There are lots of twists and turns, which I must admit that I saw coming. Her co-star is Liev Schreiber, who is also very good, but must stop being typecast by choosing a different type of role.

If you want some interesting stunts and not too heavy on the brain cells, give this film a go.

The Girl Who Played With Fire

I saw it earlier today and thought it was very good. It stands alone as a film, so you don't necessarily have to have seen the first one, although it hurts. When you see this movie, it is no wonder that Lisbeth Salander is the way she is. She has had a f*cked up upbringing, and the abuse she suffered is horrific. It is again very atmospheric (meaning Sweden looks dirty and depressing).

Noomi Rapace is absolutely amazing in this role, and I love Michael Nyqvist as the journalist.

Scott Pilgrim vs the World

What a bizarre, but very enjoyable film. It superficially reminded me of Kick-Ass because of it's style and it's taken from a graphic novel (what isn't these days).

It's very visual in a comic book style, and definitely a product of the gaming culture which I normally hate, but I laughed out loud so many times.

It stars the geeky Michael Cera of Juno and so many other geeky roles fame as Scott Pilgrim who meets the girl of his dreams - Ramona, but has to battle to the death her seven evil exes. There are lots of references to other films as well - always a favourite of mine.

It's a Marmite type of film, you will either love it or hate it.

The Switch

Latest Jennifer Aniston romcom. She is duller than dishwater and she gets less appealing with each film. Jason Bateman is quite appealing.

Jen decides that she wants to have a baby without a man and will artificially inseminate herself. She interviews for the "position", finds "Mr. Right" and has an I'm getting pregnant party (as you do). The sperm is left in a sealed container in the bathroom (again as you do). Her best friend switches the sperm with his own - I'll bet you're gripped by now. He gets so drunk, he doesn't remember doing this, and lo and behold, Jen has a baby, moves away, comes back after six years with her son and shocker aren't father and son the same...

It felt like three hours.

There are some nice little touches, but nothing that hasn't been seen before. The only thing I am grateful for is there was no kid gets sick, and finds out that sperm donor who thought he was father isn't scene.

Devil

Feel the fear with this chilling slice of horror from the mind of M. Night Shyamalan (that phrase is guaranteed to make me not want to see a movie, but then I saw that he didn't direct it, so it's ok).

The fates of five complete strangers are sealed from the minute they step into the same lift in an inner-city office block. None of them could ever have imagined that the seemingly small decisions that brought them to this moment were likely to be the last they ever made. All, that is, except one of them - the Devil, who is pulling sinister strings to make terrifying events unfold. As the lift grinds to a standstill, the group begins to suspect that something is definitely amiss. As lights flicker on and off and strange things reach out of the darkness, hysteria sets in and four of the five strangers must fight for their lives. But which of these characters is the Devil? And what can the others possibly do to save themselves from this desperate situation?

EDIT: I thought it was very good. Tension ratcheted up slowly and the movie didn't descend into silly gorefest.

The actors, music and photography were very effective. I really loved the music.

Don't try and figure out who did it. Lose yourself in the story.

There isn't a spare ounce of fat in this movie. It comes in at 80 something minutes.

Going the Distance

Long distance rom-com with Drew Barrymore and her real life boyfriend - name escapes me at the moment.

They meet in NY then have six weeks before Drew has to go back to Stanford University in CA. They have an idyllic time then decide to carry on a long distance romance with funny, sometimes hilarious and sad moments.

I laughed out loud at several scenes and it showed the age of the other women/girls in the cinema (that's all that were there), They were very young.

Drew Barrymore just gets this dating difficulty thing whenever she plays a woman looking for love. In He's Just Not That Into You - the speech about ringing his landline, and his ringing your mobile and texting, leaving messages and checking various media and how exhausting it is was very well delivered.

Both leads were very convincing along with the friends and Drew's OCD sister were very good supporting characters.

You'll never look at fake tanning or dining room tables in the same way.

Another recommendation from me.

The Other Guys

Police comedy starring Will Farrell and Mark Wahlberg.

I really like Mark Wahlberg, especially in the remake of The Italian Job, The Departed and Planet of the Apes. Not to mention his cameos in Date Night (his chest should have an honourable mention).

Mark is funny, Will leaves me cold.

Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson are hotshot cops (parodying roles they have played in the past) and they are very funny who get all the glory, and Mark and Will are the desk jockeys - Mark after shooting Derek Jeter. Now if you don't know who Derek Jeter is, and you're going to see the movie, please look it up. It is a central premise to the movie and I could not stop laughing being a Bronx girl.

There is a very convoluted story, but just watch Mark Wahlberg. Will's USP is that he is irresistible to women, and Mark's response to this is hilarious as is the wooden gun. The movie is really all over the place, but I did laugh out loud and my children did as well (this was a substitute movie for us as we were going to see the Hole in bloody 3D which is in my local cinema, but not in this location of the same cinema - don't ask). Again I have to say alot passes through a 12A these days.

The end credits get very serious which is bizarre.

Made In Dagenham

I went to see this today and really enjoyed it. It looks at the strike at Ford's in the 1960.s / 70's that led eventually to equal pay legislation. Poltical but certainly not overly political ( made by the same team that did calander girls, bit of a similar feel at points), got a rather dodgy Harold Wilsone and Miranda Richardson is brill as Barbara Castle ( once you get past thinking of her as the mad queen in Alice in Wonderland that is!!) - it met most of my criteria for an enjoyable Friday afternoon film - 2hrs 10 mins but felt shorter, enough to make you think but not too much, even bought a little tear to the eye at one point - well worth watching IMO

The Town

Apparently Charlestown, a section of Boston has the highest number of people of who commit bank robberies in the entire US.

I saw this after reading some pretty dodgy reviews. Ben Affleck, Jeremy Renner and their two cohorts rob a bank and take Rebecca Hall captive. They then let her go, but take her driver's license. Ben Affleck is charged with getting rid of her. Instead he stalks her for a while, then enters into a relationship with her... Things hot up from there, BA and co still rob banks, the FBI in the shape of Jon Hamm (Mad Men) pursues leads relentlessly.

Blake Lively turns in a surprisingly good performance as Renner's sister.

The first two-thirds of the movie was excellent, then something happens which made me think that wouldn't happen in real life, then I kinda lost interest. The car chases through the narrow streets of Boston were amazing, and this is a very good procedural thriller. I can tell you that I intensely dislike the Boston accent. it marred my enjoyment of the Departed as well. But that's a personal point, and it's probably because I am from NY and there is a natural rivalry. They even show Fenway bloody Park as well *shudders*.

Ben Affleck wrote and directed the film, he is getting more and more confident with every movie he directs. I like him very much and think he is very talented. i think he could eventually turn into a Clint Eastwood.

Overall I give the movie a solid B for effort.

The Hole in 2D

ook no. 2 son to see this earlier and very disappointing for me.

The story centres on a single parent family who move into a house which has a padlocked hole in their basement. And, as you do, they open it, and all hell breaks loose.

It was creepy early on as it plays on deepest fears.

It treads a fine line between being moderately scary and it's 12A rating. It cannot be too scary for the little ones, but I think that children 10 and younger shouldn't see this because it may be scary for them.

Joe Dante (Gremlins) is very accomplished with this kind of film. I robably would have been scared when I was a kid.

Buried

This is the film with Ryan Reynolds that you should not see if you're claustrophobic.

But if you aren't, it is an amazing movie.

The whole thing takes place in a coffin. Ryan wakes up buried in a coffin, and has in his possession a knife, a mobile phone and several dodgy light sources.

Ryan makes various phone calls to the FBI, his wife, 911 and others. It makes you see the absurdity of someone telling you to calm down when sand is pouring in your coffin or putting you on hold.

The movie is gripping and the tension is palpable. My heart started racing in one or two places.

Excellent movie A+ and a thumbs up for innovative filmmaking.

The Social Network

Excellent film.

Mark Zuckerberg is an spiteful nerd with no friends. Actually I agree with the girlfriend who breaks up with him at the beginning, he is an asshole. He is one of those mean, little people who writes biting blogs to get back at people because of his insecurities.

Anyhoo, he is invited by the Winklevoss twins to write a code for an exclusive dating site for Harvard. They entice him by inviting him into the Bicycle Room of one of the exclusive clubs that they are members of, and he is impressed.

He is already hacking and writing all sorts of codes to do things whilst at Harvard. He expands on the idea they have and invents the Facebook with his made Eduardo Savarin (whom he treats appallingly as the film goes on).

What sets this movie apart is the screenplay by Aaron Sorkin (West Wing amongst others) and direction by David Fincher. There aren't very many sympathetic characters in this movie, but I was gripped from beginning to end.

Good use of two hours in my opinion.

Let Me In

Excellent remake of the Swedish film from a couple of years ago. It is just as good IMHO as the original. Very atmospheric and follows almost line for line. If you enjoyed the original or like me, fell asleep during the original, then please do and see it.

It stars Chloe Moretz (Kick-Ass) and Kodi Smit-McPhee (The Road).

Skyline

Low budget aliens from above. What do they want. Turns out they want to suck humans up to their ships and use them as food(ish).

We have Jared and his girlfriend who have come to LA to visit his childhood friend - a rapper (forget his name) and his girlfriend who are doing well, and wants Jared to join the "team".

Early in the morning, lights come on and people start getting taken.

On the plus side, I love the aliens (nice bit of CGI). It moved along at pace - it's only 92 minutes long.

On the minus side, and this is the main thing - the bloody ending just left me going - IS THAT IT?

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt 1

I'm sorta looking forward to it. I didn't like the last one, although I am watching it again tonight before I go and see the above.

Anyone seen it? Thoughts?

EDIT: I really, really enjoyed it. I thought the last one was very dark (colours - I could barely see what was on the screen).

This one had a lot more humour, it took place outside Hogwarts, and it had a bit of the Road feeling about it.

I wasn't disappointed in the ending at all, as you have to end it somewhere. It has left me wanting to see it again, and also cannot now wait for the last one. It will be one helluva movie!

Monsters

Really liked this little movie.

This movie takes place a few years after the space ship bringing samples back from other worlds crash landed in Central America.

The monsters are there in the background, but never really take centre stage. it is a great little road movie in a fight to get back to the US.

So many metaphors and great chemistry between the two main characters.

Nice also to see monsters who do not necessarily want to destroy humans.

Unstoppable

Runaway train movie by Tony Scott with Denzel and Chris Pine (Star Trek). I really liked it. The tension was ratcheted throughout and Tony Scott rarely makes a bad movie.

Great fun!

The Way Back

Latest Peter Weir movie. It is of course cinetamographically (is that a word) beautiful. The characters are wonderful, and I was gripped from start to finish. It was also very uplifting.

Basic story, prisoners in Siberia escape, and walk 4,000 miles to India. But the story is definitely about the journey and the relationships.

See it if you can.

The Tourist

Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie in the hokeyist, most unbelievable story ever of a woman who is partner to a man who stole some of his employer's money and whose employer wants it back. Johnny Depp is an innocent who gets caught up in Angelina's web.

It so firmly has it's tongue in it's cheek, and Venice looks stunning.

It's great fun if you take it with the spirit intended.

I loved it.

127 Hours

So intense and when the scene comes it is gross and revolting. Could I do it - don't know

It's very Danny Boyle full of fantasy sequences. James Franco is very, very good as the selfish Aaron Ralston who learns that people matter.

thumbs up but not if someone taking their own arm off in a graphic way bothers you.

Season Of The Witch

Four movies in two days. Enjoyed it in that sort of questy type way. Dialogue was hokey, but Ron Perlman was funny!

The Next Three Days

Don't usually like Russell Crowe - he is a tw*t.

It was preposterous. Woman is arrested for miurder and convicted. Husband and son try to cope as best as they can. Crowe decides to break her out. He plans meticvulously and does things that just wouldn't happen in real liife.

It's very long, but the escape is exciting.

Thimbs up - only just.

Olivia Wilde is wasted and Brian Dennehy quietly steals the film.

The King's Speech

EDIT: Was excellent. Everyone knows the story about King George VI (Colin Firth) who stuttered and took over the throne when King Edward VIII (Guy Pearce) abdicated to be with the vile Mrs. Simpson. The Queen Mum, although she isn't Queen Mum then (Bellatrix le Strange) goes to Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), speech therapist to help him overcome his stutter and fulfill his destiny *said in a Darth Vader stylee*. The story is of their burgeoning relationship and friendship.

Even though we all know how it turns out, I was gripped by the story from start to finish. The audience clapped. An audience hasn't done that since I was in the States.

2 thumbs up!

The Mechanic

I saw this yesterday. Jason Statham - need I say more?

Ok for those of you who need a plot (clearly I don't as I've only ever seen two really bad JS movies - Transporter 2 and Crank 2:High Voltage - picking up on a theme) JS is a hitman aka fixer who works alone and is very methodical, thorough in preparation and very good at his job. He has one friend - Donald Sutherland who he also works through.

DS is set up and JS has to kill him which he does because he believes the evidence. Up rocks DS's son who has lost his way in life. JS trains him toi do what he does. What then follows is a couple of jobs where the son (can't remember his name) does the jobs but doesn't have the same mindset in completing his work. He is very sloppy and the company who hire JS don't like it.

On his way back from a job, JS sees some of rhe evidence in the case against DS walking and breathing, interrogates him and finds out the true story. JS realises he has made a mistake and goes after the voices on the phone who set up DS.

Whilst prepping, DS's son realises that it was JS what killed his dad. They despatch the phone guys quite quickly.

Little DS's mind then turns to revenge, but without the JS mindset...

This movie is very pacy, lots of killing - technically done well, loads of JS, not so much shirt taking off (boo hiss), a sex scene, lots of swearing and some pretty competent acting. JS let's the guns do a lot of talking, but he is very creative when a gun is sans bullets.

Needless to say, I loved it. JS knows what his audience wants and gives it to them in spades. Good on you jS, you understand that you are the action hero of the moment and you play ýour role well.

When I am old and grey, I can settle down to a nice JS boxset! When he starts doing children's movies, I will know he's lost his mojo. It happens to them all and it's not a pretty sight.

If you love JS like me, go and see The Mechanic!

True Grit

I'm going to see this tomorrow. It's a remake of the John Wayne movie from 1969.

Anyone else gonna see it?

EDIT: I saw it earlier and thought it was very good. For an Coen Brothers "serious" movie, not a massive amount of violence, but then it takes it's material from the source book, rather than the 1969 movie with John Wayne.

Story of Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) who sets out to avenge her father's death by hiring US Marshall Rooster Cogburn (Jeff "The Dude" Bridges) to bring Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin) to justice. They are joined by Texas Ranger LaBoeuf (Matt Damon).

Roger Deakins cinematography is stunning as usual - surely it's his year to get an Oscar. The story moves along apace and has good humour. The central relationship between Rooster and Mattie is very good. Matt Damon continues to impress.

Everytime I see Josh Brolin, I just think he looks like his daddy. The Academy love him, and I thought that his role in this was only so so, but then what do I know. I still think Christopher Nolan was ROBBED!

Anyway, a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours, and a good remake but not a best picture nominee, but then again the Academy also love the Coen Bros. and I'm never too sure about them (Blood Simple was excellent as was Raising Arizona). Intolerable Cruelty was the equivalent of sticking a million pins in my eyeballs then making me try to blink and having my eyeballs scraped from the inside.

Rango

I'm off to see this in the morning.

I've heard that Roger Deakins was a consultant cinematographer.

I like the premise of an animated western that isn't strictly for children.

Anyone seen it?

EDIT: I loved it. It was a proper western and it drew on so many other westerns. It was a proper homage. Once Johnny Depp toned down his Tim Burton and Gore Verbinski let me do anything I want tendencies, he was very good as Rango. The screening I was at didn't have many children, so can't tell you whether they would like it or not, but the adults certainly did

Unknown

Liam Neeson at his Taken best or at least that's what I hope it is like.

I like action man Neeson!

I am going to see this tomorrow as well.

EDIT: I thought it was very good. Liam Neeson plays this kind of role very well. He is a doctor who goes to Berlin with his wife for a conference. His briefcase is accidently left at the airport, he doesn't notice this until he gets to the airport. So he jumps back into a taxi to go and get his briefcase, and his taxi gets into an accident. He wakes up, and is terrified for his wife, finally gets to the hotel and sees her and she says "Who are you?" She then produces a man who she says is her husband.

This is very much a things aren't what they seem drama. Liam and Diane Kruger are very good. January Jones is vacant. Frank Langella always adds a menacing touch.

Gnomeo & Juliet

Hurrah 2D!

I really want to see Jason Statham as a fat gnome!

This is one of Sunday's movies.

EDIT: I thought 2/3 of it were very good, but by the end ran out of steam. I really like Emily Blunt and saw/heard her in two movies today which was good. The Adjustment Bureau is much better. Unlike some people I like the whole post-modern take on children's movies. I like in-jokes and winks/nods to other movies. The kids in the cinema loved it.

The Adjustment Bureau

Matt Damon and Emily Blunt - hopefully a good combination.

I may see this tomorrow instead of Unknown.

Looks like a filmtastic weekend!

EDIT: I think Matt Damon and Emily Blunt really have chemistry and I could totally believe they were in love.

I also adore John Slattery and Terence Stamp.

The movie is adapted from a Philip K. **** novel and it feels old and new at the same time. Old - the men in suits and hats (The Adjustment Bureau) and the very modern setting of present day NY. NY looks fabulous as always.

Story - Matt Damon and Emily Blunt meet briefly and are never supposed to meet again. When they do, it's like a butterfly effect and the adjustment bureau has to come along and fix things.

I love a good love story and this is indeed that.

Battle:Los Angeles

I thought it was ok, but turned out to be more of an alien version of Blackhawk Down. So the special effects were ok and the aliens' ship/command centre was reasonably impressive, but I did get bored after a while. But there are the obligatory - oh my god, it's the aliens, what are we going to do, why are they here, how are we going to stop them, ah we now have the solution! So very formulaic. Aaron Eckhart made a good leader. I am sure he will go on to play the President in a movie if he hasn't already!

Fair Game

I think I will enjoy Naomi Watts and Sean Penn together - both have matured nicely in films.

Another Saturday film - directed by Doug Liman who directed Bourne Identity and Mr and Mrs Smith (one of my favourite films - "Who's your daddy now?".

Should be good.

EDIT: It is an excellent film taking place in the very near past. Valerie Plame Wilson (Naomi Watts, it seemed a bit of a stretch until you see Valerie at the end) is a CIA covert operative with a husband Joe Wilson (Sean Penn) who used to be a diplomat and now has his own consulting business. He is actually quite irritating in the extremeHe makes a trip to Niger on behalf of the CIA... uranium enriching, rods, etc. Weapons of mass destruction not being found.

When one of Joe's reports is used to support going to war in Iraq, he speaks out in a letter to the NY Times. The Wilson's lives then turn upside down as an aide close to President Bush tries to deflect the spotlight by outing Valerie...

Very good performances although Sean Penn can do his fair share of scene crunching much in the way Steve McQueen did in The Magnificent Seven.

Limitless

I love Bradley Cooper. It's a physical thing.

I am going to see this later today.

Anybody else seen it?

EDIT: I just saw it. Bradley Cooper *tongue hangs out of mouth*. He is a writer who has writer's block, is offered a pill to help, takes it, comes back for more. That's when the trouble starts. I really enjoyed it.

Thor

I absolutely loved it. I saw it in 2D (don't do 3D if I can help it as the colour loss is up to 40%), and this was a beautiful film especially in Asgard. I was wondering where I had seen Chris Hemmngs before (Kim Hyde in Home and Away) and no you can't. He is part of my harem.

The film was visually stunning from Idris Elba as Heimdall the Gatekeeper, Sir Anthony Hopkins as Odin, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Natalie Portman - Jane and Stellan Skarsgard as Eric Selvig.

I expected the direction by Kenneth Brannagh to be much heavier, but it has a light touch and he seemed to understand how comic book adaptations should be.

It started out with Thor falling to Earth, then we got the back story in parallel with the Earth story, and I just wish we could have stayed in Asgard for longer because it was so beautiful.

The acting was in keeping with very good Marvel comic book adaptations. I had never read Thor before, and was surprised at homw many of my friends had actually read these as a child and hold a very great affection for Thor. I think the fans will enjoy this.

It was much better than I expected, and I think I will go again (lovely to have an unlimited cinema card).

Red Riding Hood

Absolute rubbish.

Very superficial telling of the Red Riding Hood tale with Amanda Seyfried, Julie Christie, Billy Burke, Virginia Madsen, the amzing Gary Oldman - he is a scene stealer and the Irons boy.

Catherine Hardwicke is a good director, but this is just stupid. The one thing in it's favour is that the set looks amazing.

But give it a miss.

Source Code

I thought this was very, very good with Jake Gyllenhall. People have compared it to Inception - they need to stop it because there is nothing like Inception.

Jake gets thrown into a crash eight minutes before it happens (because there is a "source code" which can recreate the last eight minutes of an event) over and over until he gets the girl and he finds out who the bomber is - in nutshell.

Directed by Duncan Jones (David Bowie son) who also directed Moon - which I didn't like but understand why the arty crowd do. He has big things ahead of him.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt 2 - contains spoilers

I was excited about seeing Harry Potter 7B weeks before. When I jumped off the bus on Friday morning, I practically ran to the cinema. The staff looked quite perky for 9:30 am, as they usually don't start on a weekday for another four hours.

Got my ticket and took my seat in cinema - there were about 10 of us. Cue adverts and movie trailers - the Smurfs looks funny, but then as usually happens, all the funny bits might be in the trailer. The Smurfs was one of my favourite cartoons when I was younger. I enjoyed it even more when I was in Italy for five months whilst travelling - it never got old that the Smurfs were speaking Italian and that they are called I Puffi. There was an interview on italian TV, and a very butch looking Italian man with a very deep voice said "a mi piace I Puffi". I nearly wet myself, as it was so unexpected.

Harry Potter 7B picks up where 7A left off, namely Voldemort picking up the elder wand from Dumbledore's grave and pointing it towards the sky. This movie is very dark in tone and look. It is one of the reasons why I refuse to see it in 3D, as 3D drains all the colour from a movie anyway, with the exception of Avatar.

Ron, Harry and Hermoine are reunited and looking for the remaining Horcruxes - Helga Hufflepuff's Cup (Hermoine destroys), Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem (Harry destroys and Ron gives it the final kick), Nagini (Neville Longbottom destroys like a knight understanding his destiny) and the final Horcrux unbeknownst to Harry is himself.

The HP3 manage to romp through destroying the Horcruxes quite quickly. I think that is one of my issues with the movies. It shouldn't be this easy to find the Horcruxes. Maybe that is my issue because some appeared in the books and were destroyed without knowing their significance. Their destruction in some instances was a footnote to Harry. Dumbledore obviously suspected, but it was only confirmed in The Deathly Hallows book.

Snape is definitely not as his most potent in this film. I'm sure that the fate of Harry Potter is weighing heavily on him. I really enjoyed Snape when he would speak through clenched teeth, drawn out tones and bringing a real sense of menace to the films. As with the books, when you understand Snape's motivation, his malevolence dissapates. His hair and skin certainly look well-cared for in this movie.

The Snape memories sequence/big reveal was wonderfully handled. I felt a whole newfound respect for the restraint that Snape had shown (much the same way Emma Thompson did Sense and Sensibility) as he went about keeping his promise to Dumbledore.

It was terrible to see what has become of Lucius Malfoy (but then that's personal, as I love Jason Isaacs and think that his force was spent at the end of the Chamber of Secrets when Dobby was made a free elf (and in my head, the Lady Gaga line - "cause I'm a free bitch baby" always appears), and Malfoy has been in decline ever since and he looks it). Hello to Jason Isaacs!

As I was watching this film, in the back of my mind I could hear "The End" by the Doors, and I was passively sad, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the film. What did though is the battle scenes. They simply weren't long enough. This is your swansong Harry Potter (franchise), and you should go out with a bang. It felt to me as if there were too much editing, and scenes that should have had a proper set pieces were footnotes -

1) Tonks and Remus death
2) Fred Weasley death
3) one of the Patil twins (can't remember which) death

4) Mrs. Weasley and Bellatrix le Strange battle (this had the feeling of Raiders of the Lost Ark when Harrison Ford had fought all the guys, and the really impressive one came with his knife skills and HF thought fuck this and just shot him). That should have been EPIC and it was a very short heart leap.

5) Harry and Lord Voldemort battle (felt very Star Wars without the action and by that I mean the battle between Darth Vader and Obi Wan Kenobi complete with different colour light sabre beams) - this particular battle was one of wills, which is fine, but I had seen it all before. This really should have been presented in a more original way and been longer. Maybe, there is only so much you can do with a wand fight, but I don't think that's true.

When Voldemort is finally despatched, I thought that scene was beautifully realised. He looked like he was almost ready to go by then. Voldemort never understood the power of collective over the dominance of one. Ralph Fiennes played the role with increasing ferocity, savagery and inhumanity. What Fiennes also brought to the role was a slow dawning vulnerability as each Horcrux was destroyed. Deep in his mind I'm sure was the thought - how could this 18 year old defeat ME.

After the final Hogwarts' battle, the school looks post-apocalyptic - think The Road or any post apocalyptic sci-fi movie you've ever seen. Everything is in muted greys and beiges and looks dusty. The heroes are the only ones with any colour to them.

The funniest scene, I think, was the Sisyphufean task of Filch was trying to do by sweeping rubble. The look on his face was priceless and he knew he just had to get on with it. Although thinking about it now, of course they would magic Hogwarts back together or would they? And what I mean by that is would it be more satisfying to build Hogwarts up brick by brick rather than using magic?

The very end was wonderful and really was a circle of life moment. My only problem was the clothes everyone was wearing. They were so frumpy, and I suspect that Hermoine's coat was Burberry!

And lest I forget, the hero of this movie and the person who has grown the most from the The Order of the Phoenix through to now is Neville Longbottom. He was heroic in every sense of the word - he gave the Henry V speech (in your face Voldermort), he constantly stuck his hand up to say yes of course we can do this, and he was the natural leader, ever cheerful and inspiring when necessary.

Harry Potter was an ordinary boy thrust into extraordinary circumstances (eight movies), and Daniel Radcliffe always played him as such. Hermoine was always brilliant and Ron was always the perfect sidekick.

What I didn't get from this was the sense that the people in the cinema didn't think it was time for the end. Once it was over, that was it. There was no lingering in the audience to applaud or reflect on the journey that eight movies have taken us through, and that is a bit sad, but some of the other Harry Potter movies that were longer felt more emotional. I think that was partly what was missing here. There wasn't much humour, so although I liked it a lot, I don't think I connected fully with it.

Mischief managed, now get back to your lives!