For All Your Movie Reviewing Needs! This blog will feature film reviews, the occasional personal blog, a tally of the films I see at the cinema and anything else I deem worthy of sharing with YOU, my loyal readers. I have archived my two previous blogs here too so anyone new can catch up with something they might have missed. Thanks for reading!
The fact that Magic Mike is directed by Steven Soderbergh kinda tells you all you need to know about this film. For those who don't know, Steven Soderbergh is not exactly known for making light hearted, fun films. His previous films have included Out Of Sight, Erin Brockovich, Traffic and Che Part 1 and 2. So why the producers picked Soderbergh to helm a film about male strippers is beyond me.
Possibly the script by Reid Carolin is the reason the producers picked Soderbergh as this also takes itself way too seriously for a movie about male strippers. I'm not saying that strippers are just to look at and can't have a serious, intelligent side. But when you're going to see them perform, that's exactly what you want. And going to see a movie about them is kinda like going to see them perform. So your core audience is not going to want any accompanying story to detract from the stripping or to weigh it down. That's Magic Mike's problem right there. The story is far too heavy for the subject matter.
Telling a story about a troubled drug addict is fine but not when your audience have turned up to watch a fun frolic with strippers. The actors are all very pretty but for me there was far too much of a serious story trying to be told which wasn't required.
I (thankfully) have never seen Showgirls but I think Magic Mike might be the male version of that film. The stripping sequences were well choreographed and fun but the rest of the movie took itself too seriously. 4 out of 10.
The Five-Year Engagement tells the story of Tom (Jason Segel) and Violet (Emily Blunt) who's initial engagement gets put back due to Violet getting a new job out of state, meaning the couple have to move house. Their nuptials get further delayed by Tom's inability to find a suitable job in their new surroundings and inevitably friends and family beat them to the aisle. Will Tom and Violet ever make it to the wedding they have waited so long for?
I've always liked Emily Blunt and enjoy Jason Segel immensely in How I Met Your Mother, I just don't ever seem to warm to him on film. But the film intrigued me with it's promise (from the producer of Bridesmaids) and by the pairing of it's leads so I wanted to see it.
Whilst it was quite funny in places I can't say that I laughed an awful lot and it definitely didn't stick in my mind as much as Bridesmaids did. Segel and Blunt did have a comedic chemistry and seemed very comfortable with each other but I didn't really buy the two of them as a couple. Which is kinda necessary in a romantic comedy.
I wouldn't recommend for a cinema outing (especially if you don't get to go that often) but once it's out on DVD you certainly wouldn't go wrong if you were looking for an easy watch comedy on a cosy night in. 6 out of 10.
Viewing Date - 10th July 2012
UK Release Date - 22nd June 2012
Cast Overview:
Jason Segel ~ Tom Soloman
Emily Blunt ~ Violet Barnes
Chris Pratt ~ Alex Eilhauer
Alison Brie ~ Suzie Barnes-Eilhauer
Rhys Ifans ~ Winton Childs
Director ~ Nicholas Stoller
Writer ~ Jason Segel (Screenplay) and Nicholas Stoller (Screenplay)
It was during the trailers for Snow White And The Huntsman that I saw this movie advertised. I thought it looked cheesy and that I was unlikely to bother with it, but then I remembered who I'd gone to see Snow White And The Huntsman with. My best friend. Who I'd also gone to see Ms Perry in concert with. I looked at her hopeful, cheery face and said "we're going to go see that aren't we?" Yes we were.
Part Of Me is basically a documentary film with Katy's 2011 world tour as the backdrop. You get to see her trying out her costumes, rehearsing and performing live in front of millions. You also see elements of other things that happened to Katy last year. Mainly the dissolving of her marriage to Russell Brand.
Katy has said quite openly that she didn't want the Russell stuff left out because she didn't want the audience to see the film and wonder why there was no mention of the biggest personal thing to happen to her last year. I think that's fair enough. It's not dramatised, no-one is pegged as the bad guy, they just show in glimpses how it affected her.
Her professionalism and also the fact that she is a real person with real feelings are what shine through in this film. The break down of Katy and Russell's marriage is heartbreaking to watch. But the fact that she carries on performing all the while just makes Katy seem all the more incredible.
Obviously the marriage is not the focus but it's hard not to talk about it. The early parts of the documentary charting Katy's fight not only to get signed to a label but stay signed is interesting and the concert scenes are well shot. The 3D very much making you feel like you're there. Though thankfully without the addition of annoying, sweaty teenagers that you get when you see her live.
If you're a fan of Katy's I think you'd really enjoy Part Of Me, if not it's probably not for you. 7 out of 10.
In the mean time here are some more movie related photos from Day 3 that you won't find in that blog...
Ok so not technically movie related but they did make a Sex and the City movie so it's kinda related! Here's D posing as Carrie in front of the apartment which is opposite the Presbyterian Church that Mr Big visits with his mother in the show*
And here is the church
We also visited Central Park that day which is the site of many a movie...
That's me in front of the Bethesda Fountain which was used as the backdrop of Disney's Enchanted during the "That's How You Know" song
Me in 'The Mall' in Central Park, where the above scene in When Harry Met Sally took place
Kerbs Boathouse can be seen behind me in the top photo, this beautiful Central Park location was used in Sex and the City as well as When Harry Met Sally and 27 Dresses**
Belvedere Castle and Conservatory Water in Central Park were both used as locations for the Julia Roberts movie Stepmom***
And while it might not technically be in the film, the delacorte clock which is part of the Central Park Zoo features in the animated film Madagascar
And finally we go back to SATC for The Pulitzer Fountain outside Grand Army Plaza. The Fountain features in a scene where Carrie sees Big and his new Bride Natasha in front of The Plaza Hotel
When the announcement was made that Spider-man was being re-booted my immediate reaction was one of outrage. Not because I thought the Spider-man story couldn't be better than what we'd already seen, no. I simply thought it was too soon to start over. After all, Spider-man 3 was only released in 2007 and 5 years, to me, is not a sufficent length of time to re-make a film (or series of films) that in my eyes worked pretty well first time around.
Having said that I knew that curiosity would get the better of me and that I would at least see the new Spider-man. If for no other reason than I could say I told you so, to the film-makers and fans who were all losing their heads over this new version.
While this version doesn't stick to the exact story from the Sam Raimi films, it is pretty close to the story we know. Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) is bitten by a Spider and inherits some of it's qualities, such as the ability to crawl up walls. Around the same time, Peter's uncle is killed and Peter decides to use his new found abilities to track down the killer and bring him to justice.
There are two big differences from this and the Sam Raimi Spider-Man. In this movie the villain is The Lizard/Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans) rather than the Green Goblin and the love interest is Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) rather than Mary Jane Watson. Now those familiar with Sam Raimi's Spider-Man films will know that Dr Connors features as Peter's university lecturer in Spider-Man 2 and 3 (yes I'm aware that 3 was the nail in the franchise's coffin as far as many people are concerned), perhaps eluding to the fact that The Lizard was scheduled to become the next villain? Those who've seen Spider-Man 3 will also recall that this introduced Gwen Stacy into the mix too. So it seems that Alvin Sargent who co-wrote the screenplay here and who also co-wrote the screenplay for Spider-Man 2 and 3 might have had a hand in the similarities. And may also explain why this Spider-Man does feel more like a follow on in many ways than an origin story.
But an origin story it is. However, the good thing about this origin story is that there are enough subtle changes, as well as the big changes, to make it feel like you're watching something you haven't seen before.
The cast is a dream and while I was a fan of Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker he just can't compete with the younger and quite frankly much better looking Andrew Garfield. Garfield concerned me going in, I hadn't been all that convinced by him in The Social Network or Never Let Me Go. Sure he's pretty but could he cut it, a brit as the all American geek? He forces me to eat my words as yes, he can cut it. And does indeed cut a fine figure in that rather revealing suit. He's cute and geeky in equal measure and really very believable as a 17 year old boy. OK, maybe 19 but certainly looks younger than Tobey did.
Emma Stone. Ah, Emma Stone. Anyone who's read my review of The Help will know that I have a *little* bit of a girl crush on Emma Stone. Let me tell you, that's gone up a notch. My god is she beautiful in this movie. She just looks flawless. And is similarly cute, vulnerable and yes, even a little geeky as Gwen Stacy. Even Rhys Ifans who I've never really paid much attention to before is really good as Dr Connors, even if I'm still not sure where his accent was from. The supporting cast too, from Denis Leary to Martin Sheen and Sally Field, are all wonderful.
I really wanted to be right about this one but damn you Spider-Man, you are as Amazing as your title suggests. 8.5 out of 10.
NB - Look out for yet another excellent cameo from Stan Lee. And there is a mid-credits scene but nothing after that.
Viewing Date - 4th July 2012
UK Release Date - 3rd July 2012
Cast Overview:
Peter Parker / Spider-Man ~ Andrew Garfield
Gwen Stacy ~ Emma Stone
Dr Curt Connors / The Lizard ~ Rhys Ifans
Captain Stacy ~ Denis Leary
Uncle Ben ~ Martin Sheen
Aunt May ~ Sally Field
Director ~ Marc Webb
Writer(s) ~ James Vanderbilt (Story and Screenplay), Alvin Sargent (Screenplay), Steve Kloves (Screenplay) and Stan Lee and Steve Ditko (Marvel Comic Book)
In Friends With Kids, Julie (Jennifer Westfeldt) and Jason (Adam Scott) - two best friends who have no physical attraction to each other - decide to have a child together having seen the disastrous effect having kids has had on their friends in relationships. Julie and Jason think that having a child together when they are not in a relationship with each other means they will skip all the fighting and hard times that come with having a baby when you're already married. Trouble in paradise begins when Julie starts to fall for her baby daddy.
The film centers on three couples, Julie and Jason who are not technically a couple but have a kid together and the two married couples, Ben and Missy (Jon Hamm and Kristen Wiig) and Alex and Leslie (Chris O'Dowd and Maya Rudolph). As Jennifer Westfeldt wrote and directed this movie as well as giving herself the lead role, you could be mistaken for thinking that she saw Bridesmaids, saw how good everyone was and decided that stealing the cast from that movie would guarantee her a hit. She could not have been more wrong.
See the difference between Bridesmaids and this is that Bridesmaids made the most of it's comedy cast. Kristen Wiig co-wrote Bridesmades and boy is she a funny lady. Chris O'Dowd we all know from The IT Crowd and The Boat That Rocked, is a funny guy. Put them together with other funny people in funny scenarios and you've got a hit. Make those people miserable and depressed for two hours and you've got a disaster.
That's what Friends With Kids does. It might be realistic (I don't know as I don't have kids) but it's not funny enough with the realism and it definately doesn't make the most of the cast. What on earth possessed Kristen Wiig to make this movie I don't know? Maybe she owed Jennifer Westfeldt a massive favour? Maybe she wanted to prove her dramatic acting talent? Whatever it was it wasn't worth it. She spends two hours being depressed and angry and it does not a good comedy make.
Westfeldt and Scott are fine as the leads but as everyone else is so severely (and in the case of Wiig), criminally underused, you don't really care. And the ending is so abrupt you'll wonder why you waited for it. Not worthy of the talent involved. 5 out of 10.
I wanted to see this version of Snow White all the way back to when there was speculation that Kristen Stewart's Snow White would be sharing the screen with Viggo Mortensen's Huntsman.
Of course, when the younger - and some would say even more ruggedly handsome - Chris Hemsworth (my close personal friend after the Avengers Premiere) took the role I was even more keen to see it.
You see, unlike most of the Twiverse I do actually like Stewart and have done since I saw her in Panic Room many moons ago. And I also happen to think she's capable of a lot more than playing a stuttery, Edward-dependent version of Bella Swan. I was hoping that here, we'd finally get the gritty, feisty Kristen Stewart to stand up.
*Spoiler Alerts from here on out*
But alas no. She is somewhat feisty in her first scenes, pulling a rusty nail out of the wall in order to use it as a weapon, thus allowing her to escape her prison. But had she seriously not attempted to get out of there long before this? It seems unlikely that she'd all of a sudden be capable of such a strategy.
Once she's outside in the open she becomes a bit useless again and needs to be rescued by the Huntsman, but let's face it I think we'd all become a bit useless and need rescuing if we were faced with Chris Hemsworth! That's not the unbelievable point really. That comes later when both feisty Snow and the grubby Huntsman are captured and then helped by dwarves. It just makes them both seem a bit pathetic really.
Believe me I do know that the tale of Snow White typically comes with a side order of dwarves, but when the story strays from the original fairy tale in other ways it does make you wonder why they felt the need to stick so close to that one particular part. One thing I will say about the dwarves is that the CGI on them is flawless. All of the dwarves were portrayed by non-dwarf actors and shrunk down by the magic of CGI.
Another point while we're talking magic. I'd quite like to live in Sanctuary. I realise that it's highly unlikely that it's a real place, but if it is I'd like to go there and forget about work for a bit. Just saying.
Anyway, so Snow gets her feist back by the end and storms the castle to kill the wicked queen. So she's not all that useless after all. Oh yeah and the insipid bloke from the most recent Pirates movie plays the prince. And he's still insipid. I was hoping Snow would choose the Huntsman in the end, have him cleaned up and make him all princely but instead the film ends on a bit of an ambiguous note with Snow standing around holding a twig for no particular reason, looking as though she's left the gas on.
It's definitely better than the earlier Snow White movie from this year but that doesn't mean it's great. Considering the talent involved I was more than a little disappointed with SWATH. But I'd probably still buy the DVD so I could perv over Hemsworth again. 7 out of 10.
Viewing Date - 20th June 2012
UK Release Date - 30th May 2012
Cast Overview:
Kristen Stewart ~ Snow White
Chris Hemsworth ~ The Huntsman
Charlize Theron ~ Ravenna
Sam Claflin ~ William
Sam Spruell ~ Finn
Ian McShane ~ Beith
Bob Hoskins ~ Muir
Ray Winstone ~ Gort
Nick Frost ~ Nion
Eddie Marsan ~ Duir
Toby Jones ~ Coll
Director ~ Rupert Sanders
Writer(s) ~ Evan Daugherty (Screen Story and Screenplay), John Lee Hancock (Screenplay) and Hossein Amini (Screenplay)
Most of my regular readers will know that I am a huge fan of some classic movies that were made before my time, or before I was old enough to appreciate them. Some recent classics that I have been lucky enough to catch on the big screen in the last year include The Terminator, Aliens, Heathers, Labyrinth, The Princess Bride and Stand By Me (to name but a few).
So it may come as a shock to hear that Jaws has never been one to impress me. Sure I liked it, but I've never wanted to own it. I'm not a huge Spielberg fan but I can certainly recognise that he's got talent. So I can't really put my finger on what it is about Jaws that never really appealed to me. Maybe I just watched it at the wrong age or in the wrong frame of mind? But there was something about seeing it on a big screen that I didn't want to miss.
For those of you who somehow have no idea what Jaws is all about, it's a film about a great white shark terrorising a small seaside resort. The film was based on a book of the same name and went on to become the highest-grossing film in history at the time of it's release. It won several awards for its soundtrack and editing, and it is often cited as one of the greatest films of all time. Along with 1977's Star Wars, Jaws was pivotal in establishing the modern Hollywood 'summer blockbuster'.
And boy am I glad I saw it! I only wish (and I never thought I'd utter these words) they'd released it in 3D! Imagine that great beast coming out of an IMAX screen at you! Now there would be something to see!
I enjoyed Jaws immensely on the big screen. John Williams score dazzling as they always do in surround sound. Roy Schneider's face when Jaws comes up to meet him as he shovels bloody fish guts into the water, and that great line. No, not 'you're gonna need a bigger boat', though that is a doozy, I forgot that great elated feeling at the end as Brody sneers 'smile you son of a...' before firing at the Oxygen tank lodged in the shark's mouth.
The film itself seemed to go at a much steadier pace than I remembered so maybe I was just too young to appreciate it first time around, being more concerned with seeing the shark than taking in the performances and how brilliantly Spielberg builds that all important tension. I also recalled the shark being rubbery and looking a bit fake. I don't know if they've re-touched the re-release with some CGI trickery but I thought the shark looked a lot more realistic this time around.
Fun Fact - Two scenes were altered following test screenings. As the audience's screams had covered up Scheider's "bigger boat" one-liner, Brody's reaction after the shark jumps behind him was extended, and the volume of the line was raised. Spielberg also decided that he was greedy for "one more scream", and reshot the scene in which Hooper discovers Ben Gardner's body, using $3,000 of his own money after Universal refused to pay for the reshoot. The underwater scene was shot in Fields's swimming pool in Encino, California, using a lifecast latex model of Craig Kingsbury's head attached to a fake body, which was placed in the wrecked boat's hull.
Considering I really didn't think that much of it going in, seeing the re-release has definitely made a fan out of me. If you love it already then don't miss your chance to see it on the big screen, and if like me, you were never a fan, give Jaws another chance. My DVD's on the way. 9 out of 10.
Viewing Date - 18th June 2012
UK (Re)Release Date - 15th June 2012
Cast Overview:
Roy Schneider ~ Sheriff Martin Brody
Robert Shaw ~ Quint
Richard Dreyfuss ~ Matt Hooper
Lorraine Gary ~ Ellen Brody
Murray Hamilton ~ Mayor Larry Vaughn
Craig Kingsbury ~ Ben Gardner
Director ~ Steven Spielberg
Writer(s) ~ Peter Benchley (Screenplay and Based on his Novel) and Carl Gottlieb (Screenplay)
As promised, no personal blogging here but a link to Day 2 of my New York Adventure, should your lazy Sunday require some light reading and looking at holiday snaps.
Here's a couple of movie related photos to whet your appetite.
The Oscorp Building from Spiderman
Staircase inside the New York Public Library used in the first Sex And The City movie for Carrie and Big's (non) wedding
View of the street opposite the New York Public Library, where the wall of water came down in The Day After Tomorrow
Recent film fans will recognise this bridge from Marvel's Avengers
(or Avengers Assemble in the UK). It's where the main battle takes place with the Chitauri at the end
This building was used as the facade of the fictional "Pemrose building" in The Secret of My Success, as well as the fictional "Clamp Tower" in Gremlins 2
The Metlife Building was famously used as The Daily Planet building in the Superman movies. The flat roof is where Lois Lane's near fatal helicopter ride started
