New York Adventure – Day 5

Day 5 has now been uploaded onto my exclusively NY blog, D&Ks NY Experience. For the full blog and all the photos please click: http://dknyexperience.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/new-york-adventure-day-5-conquering-fear.html

Day 5 was a big day for D and I, in more ways than one. We literally had to conquer our fear of heights and D's vertigo in one day! Below are some photos from Day 5 that you won't find in the D&Ks NY Experience blog along with some more movie related locations...

Starting with the Top Of The Rock

And as it looked in The Adjustment Bureau:

Next we saw the Flatiron Building

And here's how it looked in Spider-Man:

The movie locations continued as we visited 8 Hook and Ladder

Otherwise known as the Ghostbusters fire house

Our next stop was at Ground Zero where we saw the building of Freedom Tower

D tells me she did see a shot of this in The Amazing Spider-Man but there are yet to be any screencaps of this as the movie has only been released in cinemas. In the mean time lets look at the very pretty Andrew Garfield looking down on New York City.

Whilst at Ground Zero we visited St Paul's Chapel, if you don't know anything about St Paul's you can find out more here. It's not been in any movies but it was a very special place that D and I felt privileged  to be able to visit.

Next up we headed on over to Brooklyn to grab an ice cream at the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory which sits under the Brooklyn Bridge.

After our indulgence we decided it would be a good idea to walk back to Manhattan over the Brooklyn Bridge to burn off those calories. Here's a nice photo of the Brooklyn Bridge from on the bridge

And here is virtually the same shot in the Sex And The City Movie

Our final stop of the day was to visit The Empire State Building. The lift ride took it out of poor D and she barely got to see the Observation Deck but here's some of the photos I took

And here's how it looks in Sleepless In Seatle

And there you have Day 5. Remember for the full blog and more photos visit my D&Ks NY Experience Blog using this link http://dknyexperience.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/new-york-adventure-day-5-conquering-fear.html

And many thanks again to onthesetofnewyork for the use of their screencaps. All screencaps courtesy of http://www.onthesetofnewyork.com/

The Adjustment Bureau

http://www.theadjustmentbureau.com/

If you've read my reasons for doing this blog, you'll know the last thing I want to do is steal from another review. The very last thing I EVER want to do is steal from an Empire review. So obviously I won't. What I will say is that they categorised this film so perfectly that I at least have to tell you what they said. So to paraphrase with the utmost respect, Empire's Helen O'Hara who said that The Adjustment Bureau is "Inception for romantics". She nailed it. And that is why I want to be one of them!

I knew very little about The Adjustment Bureau going in, I'd just seen the posters on the bus shelters around Brighton. I hadn't seen the trailer and I hadn't read anything about it (not even Empire's four star review). If, like me, you haven't done any research on the film please allow me to elaborate.

The Adjustment Bureau opens on the campaign trail of New York Congressman David Norris (Matt Damon). We see him flying high in the polls and then bottoming out when pictures surface of his bar fighting, prank pulling past. While practicing his 'down but not out' speech for the announcement of his lost election he meets Elise (Emily Blunt) who inspires him to tell the truth to the public as she thinks they'll reciprocate more to an honest man. He does this and although the election is lost, David's popularity soars. A few weeks pass and David meets Elise again, by chance, and she gives him her number. Moments later David is kidnapped by a bunch of trilby wearing men who tell him he must never see Elise again as doing so would be going against 'The Plan'. 

Does David fight for who he believes is the person he's meant to be with, or go along with the design in store for his future? You'll have to see the film to find out. What I will tell you is that this is a nail biting, tense thriller which also has a believable love story running alongside it. You wouldn't think those two genres would go together but they work surprisingly well when teamed up. Without the love story I'm not sure what you'd root for here. With it, and I know this sounds cheesy, the film has heart. It makes you so passionate about the outcome of the film that you'll never have been happier to see a love story spliced with a thriller.

*Spoiler Alert!* About two thirds of the way in I was thinking, "if these two don't end up together then this has been a really shit film!". I'm sure my score mixed with aforementioned comment will give away the ending, hence the spoiler alert!

I was half hoping after Matt Damon's performance in Hereafter that this film would be a dud, or at least that he would be. The half of me that was hoping he'd be good was not disappointed. His performance here was just as good (though not as emotional as Hereafter - but then the movie is totally different) and I find, for the second time this year, that I am swiftly becoming a Matt Damon fan. Something I've never been and never thought I'd be. Emily Blunt was her usual marvellous self showing her vulnerable and quirky sides and making the audience fall in love with her, as she does so frequently with ease. The supporting cast from Terrence Stamp to Anthony Mackie are also faultless and allow the audience to have some feeling towards the bureau rather than have them be a faceless organisation. 

A film that will have you on the edge of your seat while also falling a little bit in love. 8 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 5th March 2011

UK Release Date - 4th March 2011

Cast Overview:

Matt Damon ~ David Norris

Emily Blunt ~ Elise Sallas

Anthony Mackie ~ Harry Mitchell

John Slattery ~ Richardson

Terence Stamp ~ Thompson

Director ~ George Nolfi

Writer(s) ~ George Nolfi (Screenplay) and Philip K Dick (Short Story)