Labor Day

Mini Review 

http://www.labordaymovie.co.uk/

I really didn't know what to expect from Labor Day from the trailer but I knew I wanted to see it. Thankfully, unlike a lot of other films lately that have only come out at independent cinemas (or the really big Cineworld in Crawley), Labor Day did come out at Cineworld in Brighton and so my friend and I went along to see what it really was all about.

The film opens on single mother Adele (Kate Winslet) and her son Henry (Gattlin Griffith). We soon learn that Henry's father Gerald (Clark Gregg) left Adele for his secretary, and immediately you get the feeling this was due to more than him not being able to remain faithful to his wife. It is intimated that Adele is suffering in some way, at first I thought from depression, but later you get the full story (which I won't go into as I feel it really should be seen). One day when Henry has managed to get his mother out of the house and to the supermarket, they happen upon Frank (Josh Brolin) who has recently escaped police custody after an operation. He convinces Adele to take him home with them and while at first Frank intends to leave the next morning, he ends up having to stay due to it being the Labor Day weekend, as he is unable to get out of town. As Adele and Henry get to know Frank, they see that first impressions do not always get to the heart of the matter, and in harboring a fugitive, they may actually save themselves.

I'm actually really sad that it has taken me a week to write this review because I believe that Labor Day has now finished in Brighton, and it is one of the best films I have seen so far this year.

Winslet and Brolin are superb and have such wonderful chemistry, but it's a combination of fantastic writing, spot on direction and cinematography, the acting and the pacing of the movie that make it so enjoyable and watchable. I suppose at heart it is a love story but it's not soppy in any way. You might also think that the likelihood of a woman like Adele falling for a convicted fellon over a weekend is rather dubious, but their relationship never feels rushed or unrealistic. The narration by the older Henry, played by Tobey Maguire, also adds a touch of familiarity and almost cocoons you into thinking everything will be alright. He has a nice voice which I never really noticed until now.

If Labor Day is still showing near you I really do urge you to see it. And if my review came too late I can only apologise that you'll have to wait for the DVD. It is so good though, I can only ask that you please do invest in that wait. 9.5 out of 10. 

Viewing Date - 22nd March 2014 

UK Release Date - 21st March 2014 

Cast Overview:

Adele ~ Kate Winslet

Frank ~ Josh Brolin

Henry ~ Gattlin Griffith

Adult Henry ~ Tobey Maguire

Young Frank ~ Tom Lipinski

Mandy ~ Maika Monroe

Gerald ~ Clark Gregg

Officer Treadwell ~ James Van Der Beek

Mr Jervis ~ J.K. Simmons

Evelyn ~ Brooke Smith

Director ~ Jason Reitman

Writer(s) ~ Jason Reitman (Screenplay) and Joyce Maynard (Novel)

Titanic 3D

http://www.titanicmovie.com/

When Titanic was first released in 1997 I was 16. I'm sure my readers will appreciate that as a 16 year old girl I loved Titanic, and Kate and Leo, and even the Celine Dion song. It's also one of the things that brought about my friendship with two of my best friends, as we were initially pen friends who met through a Heavenly Creatures fanzine. I guess what I'm trying to say is that Titanic not only had an impact on me as a cinema-goer (I think it was the first film I saw multiple times at the cinema with a grand total of 4 viewings prior to this one), but it also brought two of the most important people into my life. So I owe it a debt of gratitude.


So whilst some people may snigger at the 3D re-release or complain about how cheesy the film is, I was quite looking forward to going back to Titanic.

For those who have been living under a rock for the last 100 years, Titanic is a film about the famous 'unsinkable' ship of the same name. The story is told through the eyes of Rose (Kate Winslet), a 17 year old girl who is travelling on Titanic with her fiance Cal (Billy Zane), on their way to New York for their wedding. Rose feels trapped by the life that she is being forced into by her money grabbing mother, and on the first night of the voyage she flees to the back of the ship with the intention of throwing herself into the icy waters beneath. She is saved from this decision, and by an accidental fall into the ocean, by Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio). Jack and Rose soon become friends as Jack shows Rose that there is more to life than being a rich man's wife. However, disaster soon strikes the vessell as the ship hits the infamous iceberg.


"It's STILL a classic!" declared the man sitting next to me to his buddy at the end. And whilst I was shocked that this declaration came from a man, I concur. It is still a classic. And while the IMAX screen did show up some of the more ropey effects, it also allowed me to see things I had previously missed. It was a truly wonderful way to see the film and I would highly recommend the IMAX experience to anyone wanting to see a really big spectacle of a movie. The ship looks magnificent on the huge IMAX screen and Leo and Kate look gorgeous, but I must say, as a 30 year old looking at them now I couldn't believe how young they both looked. 


Watching the film as a woman, rather than the girl I was at the time of the original release, I can honestly say that the tragic number of deaths really shocks you. As a girl I found it sad but I don't think you really realise how many people perished when you're younger, but it really hits home as an adult. Therefore, whether you believe in the love story or not, the ending is still as tragic. And the film still had an emotional impact on me even though I am now 30 and have seen the film several times. 


If you have never seen it or are a fan like I am, even if you're a fan who doesn't like to admit it or who hasn't seen it in a number of years, I would recommend refreshing your memory and certainly recommend the IMAX experience. Yes it has flaws but it's a story that was close to writer/director James Cameron's heart, and if you admit it to yourself it's close to yours too. 9 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 6th April 2012

UK Release Date - 6th April 2012

Cast Overview:

Leonardo DiCaprio ~ Jack Dawson

Kate Winslet ~ Rose DeWitt Bukater

Billy Zane ~ Caledon 'Cal' Hockley

Kathy Bates ~ Molly Brown

Frances Fisher ~ Ruth DeWitt Bukater

Gloria Stuart ~ Old Rose

Bill Paxton ~ Brock Lovett

Bernard Hill ~ Captain Edward James Smith

David Warner ~ Spicer Lovejoy

Victor Garber ~ Thomas Andrews

Jonathan Hyde ~ Bruce Ismay

Suzy Amis ~ Lizzy Calvert

Director/Writer ~ James Cameron

Contagion

http://contagionmovie.warnerbros.com/index.html

As with last weeks The Three Musketeers I wasn't all that bothered about seeing Contagion but as it had a semi impressive cast and potential to not suck I figured I'd end up seeing it anyway. And see it I did. 

As the title suggests, Contagion is a movie about a virus and how quickly it, as well as fear of it, spreads through towns and cities all over the world. We follow several groups of people as they deal with the virus, a family in Minnisota who lose two members to the unknown and deadly disease, several doctors trying to find a cure, the Center for Disease Control who are having to deal with press as well as trying to learn about the virus and where it came from and a reporter who is trying to stop drug manufacturers from cashing in on the crisis, among others.

Contagion was actually a much better film than the trailer implies. It won't win any awards but the ensemble cast do a fine job of their respective roles and ultimately make the jumble of characters on offer into a bunch people that you care about. Not easy when you have so many big names all vying for a piece of the action.

And speaking of action, I also don't think the film was as horrific as I was expecting from the trailer. The film is only a 12A, which I don't think I realised when I saw the trailer initially, imagining a bit of a gorefest as suggested by some of the scenes shown. Instead it was a film that moved at a steady pace and kept me engaged in watching it and interested to know what was going to happen. 

It had me intrigued from the opening minute as to why the film started on 'day 2' of the outbreak. I won't spoil it but I thought the way they wrapped things up at the end was a clever way to do it and finished things off in a very neat way.

Probably not the best film out this week, but certainly not the worst by a long stretch. 7 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 23rd October 2011

UK Release Date - 21st October 2011

Cast Overview:

Marion Cotillard ~ Dr Leonora Orantes

Matt Damon ~ Mitch Emhoff

Laurence Fishburne ~ Dr Ellis Cheever

Jude Law ~ Alan Krumwiede

Gwyneth Paltrow ~ Beth Emhoff

Kate Winslet ~ Dr Erin Mears

Jennifer Ehle ~ Dr Ally Hextall

Elliott Gould ~ Dr Ian Sussman

Chin Han ~ Sun Feng

John Hawkes ~ Roger

Daria Strokous ~ Irina
Anna Jacoby-Heron ~ Jory Emhoff
Brian J O'Donnell ~ Andrew

Director ~ Steven Soderbergh

Writer ~ Scott Z Burns