A letdown after Belgravia. As soulless, frenetic and confusing as any Doctor Who episode. I think it had a different writer and director. Getting tired of Holmes' schtick of being able to guess everything about someone from contrived details. Dull cinematography too.
I agree that this episode wasn't as good as last weeks...but it was still a darn good piece of tv....the director was the same...Mark Gatiss wrote this episode though, last weeks was written by chief Dr Who scribe Steven Moffat. It was the pair of them that came up with the idea for updating Sherlock whilst they collaborated on an episode of Dr Who...
But Holmes' schtick is what makes him Holmes...without that it's pretty much just another tv detective show...
Looking forward to next weeks episode....alas it's the last in this series...and could be the last one anyway....Martin Freeman will be rather busy for the forseeable whilst he makes The Hobbit...
Exact same premise as the first film, one of the gang is getting married, boys go out to celebrate and wake up the next day without a clue as to what happened the night before, other than many bad things happened. They then begin searching for clues to try and piece back together the night. As the details of the night unfold we learn it was quite a wild night indeed.
Like most sequels this is not as good as the first one, it was more predictable, the budget was bigger so they had to have more elaborate set pieces like car chases and gun fights, and in an attempt to be funnier some of the humor got more grotesque. That’s not to say I didn’t laugh at times because I did, but I didn’t laugh as much or as hard as I did at the first one.
I don’t think they can stretch this premise any farther, but Hollywood will probably try. Worth a rental.
The Sky Crawlers - Directed by Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell) and set in a alternative/near future Earth setting where the safety valve to prevent real conflict is a staged air war between two quasi-corporate power blocs. The combatants are pilots in their mid to late teens, who are skilled and privileged, but also segregated from mainstream society and patronised. The overdubbing is workmanlike, but Stephanie Sheh channels vulnerability with authority well. The animation is generally decent and sharp, mixing in cell shaded animation with CGI, depicting some stunning air battles. Perhaps a bit too long for what it was and I’ll have to get round to watching it again in its native language to form a better opinion. 8/10
Appleseed - This is a OVA adaptation of the hit 1980s Manga and so a bit too short (a runtime of only 70 minutes), with inconsistent animation (some scenes it‘s smooth and hyper detailed, other times garish and stodgy). It is set in the post apocalyptic metropolis of Olympus, where two seemingly mismatched but close partners from a ESWAT unit (Deunan - a woman. And Briareos - a hulking cyborg) must take down a terrorist cell that threatens to hijack a experimental mobile weapons platform. The English voice acting can be unintentionally comical in places and unnecessarily foul mouthed (ah, 80s/90s era Manga Studios), but the dub also features the voice talents of Vincent Marzello (he featured other productions such as Taggart and, um, Bob the Builder). And “Olympus” sure gets misspelled a lot. 6/10
Spirited Away - Little wonder this sumptuous anime feature film pushed Studio Ghibli and Japanese animation firmly into the Western mainstream. A very complex looking animation extravaganza bound together by a basic but efficient plot; a young girl (Rumi Hiragi) gets lost in a beautiful but faintly distressing netherworld, seen her parents get turned into pigs, and is desperately finding a way to escape. Along the way she meets strange, initially threatening beings such as Yubaba and No-Face, in addition to allies such as Haku, who helps participate in the workings of Yubaba’s immense bathhouse (the haunt of strange Japanese spirits and demi-gods) . The netherworld, mainly set around a elaborate bathhouse, is a good example of less being more in terms of great fictional world building. 10/10
'Alright guard, begin the unnecessarily slow moving dipping mechanism...'
Relatively small budget film with some big name actors that tells the story of a few key players at a New York investment bank at the beginning of the financial crisis.
When a young investment banker discovers the firm is way over leveraged and could collapse, it begins a 24 hour period of executive clashes, soul searching, firings and a rush to unload all the bad investments in one day. The film does an excellent job of creating an atmosphere of fear, hopelessness and greed.
According to IMDB, the film was made for less than 4 million dollars, which is surprising because the cast is loaded with excellent actors, including Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, Paul Bettany, Demi Moore and Stanley Tucci. The actors are the key to the movie as they all are excellent at capturing the ruthlessness of the investment banking world. I especially enjoyed Paul Bettany.
2010 drama about downsizing at a Boston conglomerate with its roots in shipbuilding. The laid-off people are mostly white-collar workers with long tenure who are unprepared for unemployment. They are not totally sympathetic (Ben Affleck has to sell his Porsche and drop out of the country club, poor fellow, and initially sneers at the thought of working as a carpenter with his brother-in-law) but neither are they complete jerks either. A strong cast includes Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper and Kevin Costner. Affleck is expecially good - he's an underrated actor IMO.
Up In The Air did the downsizing thing a bit better, but this is a good film. Not great, but worth a watch.
Doug Glatt (Seann William Scott) isn't the brightest of sparks, which makes him the black sheep of his super-brainy family. Working as a bouncer, good-natured Canadian Doug's life is going nowhere until he steps in to defend his wasted best friend Pat (Jay Baruchel) at an ice hockey game. His lethal right hook attracts attention and he soon finds himself recruited to a disunited team of misfits called the Halifax Highlanders. Doug's role isn't to play the game - it's to beat up the opposition
Was an OK watch, not great would say 6.5 out of 10. Perhaps it's because we don't have ice hockey here.
Come on guys! Pay for your viewings so there can continue to be quality content to view! Things are getting pricey out there, so if we want awesomely high budgeted stuff, we must support the creators and not steal.
Fletch- Very funny movie with Chevy Chase about a journalist who wears many disguises to find the truth. When dressed up as a druggy to knock down on them, a rich man asks him to kill him for him... the rest as follows is a bucket full of laughs, I suggest this movie if you need to be cheered up a little
Sherlock holmes 2-I liked it, pretty much like what you guys said about it. It's left open for a next one.
“The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. "
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
Yeah, fletch it a great movie, its a pity the sequel fletch lives isn't as good.
yeah, its like that. I also hate movies which are suppousdley a sequel of one, but none of the same characters, orginization or even country as the first. Like wild geese with roger moore, wild geese 2 was just awful.
“The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. "
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
Excellent if disturbing thriller about a serial killer who chooses his victims based on the seven deadly sins.
I think this was David Fincher at his best blending the private lives of two very different homicide detectives with a mysterious killer whose identity we learn later in the film (I won't name the actor but I will say that he is perfectly cast and he would have made a better Hannibal Lecter than Anthony Hopkins).
It isn't one for the faint-hearted as the violence as well as the subtext are very shocking. But this outlins how evil the villain really is. And the variety of action scenes gives it a very complete feel and keeps one leaning off the edge of one's seat.
My one complaint is that I find Brad Pitt rather emotionless and unconvincing.
Nonetheless, Seven is required viewing for film fans but definitely not for kids.
“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to a better understanding of ourselves.” - Carl Jung
Film that tells the true story of Billy Beane, played by Brad Pitt, the General Manager of the Oakland A's a major league baseball team with a small budget trying to compete against the likes of the New York Yankees and their 100 million dollar budget. Beane meets a computer geek, played superbly by Jonah Hill, who has developed a computer program to analyze player's production. Beane hires him and they start re-assembling the team based on computer projections. Initially met with skepticism, the team goes on to win their division and forever change how baseball teams assemble teams and analyze players.
Beane is an interesting character, a onetime projected baseball superstar who ultimately failed in the major league, the experience of being told he would be great and not living up to that hype has haunted him ever since. That experience leads him to lack faith in the analysis of scouts and rely on computer numbers.
I don't think you need to be a baseball fan to enjoy this film, it is more about one man’s attempt to try something new and the resistance he faces, then it is about baseball. I really enjoyed the film and highly recommend it.
Last episode of Sherlock, big improvement on Baskervilles imo, but some plot odds and ends didn't work for me. How did Moriaty
Manage to pass himself off as an actor? Needs more than an print out, and if he had done those TV gigs in long-term preparation of spiteing Holmes, how come it hadn't come to light when he stood trial? Would make more sense in Conan Doyle's day, when no imdb or TV work.
Still, gripping stuff for the most part, and did succeed in making me doubt Sherlock, no small achievement.
It is funny and good, but totally mis-marketed. Its trailers make it look like it is all about the bridesmaids and is a bit of a Hangover-with-women sort of thing, but instead it is more about Kristen Wiig's troubled character. Some of those troubles come from her being the Maid of Honor, but much of what is shown is more in romantic comedy territory of just her life. It is worth a watch if you want to see some of the antics between all the bridesmaids, but know that it is really about Kristen Wiig's character hitting rock bottom and trying to get out of it, all while dealing with a nutty wedding party.
A somewhat mannered, elegaic, retro take on the Le Carre novel by the director of The Lives of Others. Watching it, I couldn't help wishing The Living Daylights had been shot in such a way, and QoS too, wonderful photography and atmosphere.
An amazing Brit cast too - everyone from Batman's Gary Oldman to Only Fools and Horses' Trigger via Sherlock's Benedict Cumberbatch and Batman's Tom Hardy (what thick pouty lips he has!)
But it isn't quite all that, it's hard to follow sometimes and there are so many characters it's hard to get a hold on them. This kind of story works better slow-burning over several weeks so you get to know them all and feel a sense of betrayal when you know who the 'mole' is. Here you don't really, and some forced flashbacks to happier times seem a phoney way of doing nostalgia, to evoke a feeling that hasn't been earned (Chesterton's definition of sentiment).
Still, a great looking film to settle down and watch in a seedy London cinema.
Last episode of Sherlock, big improvement on Baskervilles imo, but some plot odds and ends didn't work for me. How did Moriaty
Manage to pass himself off as an actor? Needs more than an print out, and if he had done those TV gigs in long-term preparation of spiteing Holmes, how come it hadn't come to light when he stood trial? Would make more sense in Conan Doyle's day, when no imdb or TV work.
Still, gripping stuff for the most part, and did succeed in making me doubt Sherlock, no small achievement.
I think that was the least of our questions by the end of the episode ) Such a great series... and I've still got this series on my sky+ as I always catch more on a second viewing.
Rumours are rife with how it ended, and there are MANY questions still unanswered... which of course makes us wonder
how the hell he managed to pass off that stunt. I mean, we all saw him fall of the building, and no one could have survived that....
However, we still never found out why the little girl screamed, even though it was proved that Sherlock hadn't seen her before... and of course Molly was asked to help... but we don't know how. And how convienient was it that Watson was run over... and concussed!
She's worth whatever chaos she brings to the table and you know it. ~ Mark Anthony
From one spy film to a very different one, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
Well, it had my palms wet to be fair! I found it exciting alright, but not moving at all. Mind you, I'd settle for sex like that.
Actually, I'd settle for sex.
It's the Cruise brand, it's like an empty battery that gets recharged with new characters around him. I prefer this team to the last unmemorable lot, but they don't gel too well cos you just think, well, there'll be another lot next time. The opener in a Serbian gaol seems to be Cruise auditioning for the Jack Rancher role, all bulked up and knocking out prisoners and guards and so on. Simon Pegg is the boffin but a lot of the humour seems a bit inappropriate because the director doesn't know how to set up the expectation of humour, if feels a bit lame. Also, you can't help thinking that the team are chosen to not be taller than Cruise, at which they succeed.
Really, this is like three episodes of a big-budget Hustle strung together, with the hoariest McGuffin in the book - Russian nuclear codes. 8-) The cinemtography wasn't too great or lovely to look at, and the Imax experience I can't really get the hang of, the screen goes deep when there's some big vista but it seems a bit tacky to me, plus it destroys the suspenion of disbelief. Cruise doesn't have many layers as an actor and the crucial thing is you don't really quite believe any of it and I'm not sure you're supposed to but it's all mighty earnest.
Although I enjoyed "Haywire" I couldn't help thinking, that many Movies today feel the same.
In "Haywire" we get a fight in a hotel room followed by a chase across some Dublin rooftops.
Similar to;
Taken, QOS, and all the Bourne movies, Same basic lighting set ups and editing, as if all the
Thrillers where now blending together as One generic type. Until another Tarantino comes
along with a few New ideas.
Loved the music in Haywire, very 70's Tv cop show. It reminded me of the professionals or
New Avengers.
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
George Clooney directs and stars in this political drama, where everyone is out for themselves and a knife in the back is common place.
Clooney plays Governor Mike Morris, a liberal Democrat, who is running for the Democratic nomination for President. Morris is in a tight battle in the Ohio primary when his media director, played by Ryan Gosling, uncovers a secret about the Governor. We soon learn that in politics the only loyalty is to one’s self.
Despite the excellent cast, which includes, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Ward, the film never develops any real tension. The pacing of the film is slow, with many long conversations between the main players where we see how everyone is mostly interested in trying to make themselves look good.
The excellent cast and their work in the film make this worth a rental, but I was underwhelmed.
As TV, castle, borrowed the third series, funny as ever nathan fillion. Oh, and Stana katic, she was in a Bond film wasn't she? QOS, anyway it was good. Seem to remember a fan of hers who wanted her back in for Bond 23
“The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning. "
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
Anyone catch the Black Mirror series on Channel 4 over the holidays?
I know this is a late post.... but I've just finished watching the last one tonight. It was 3 'takes' on different 'could be's'
The first was about a ransom demand, aimed at the prime minister, in return for the Duchess of Cambridge's life.... a very interesting one at that...
The second was a satirical look at what people would do to get onto a show like the X factor (to it's extreme)
And the third was a look at what life would be like if we were 'grainied' - a small device planted in our brain so that we could remember and re-live our entire past....
Interesting concepts, with all rather negative results, however, the star of the second episode (and in fact one of the daughters in Downton Abbey) sung this rendition of Irma Thomas - Anyone who know what love is (will understand) here
Thought I would share....
She's worth whatever chaos she brings to the table and you know it. ~ Mark Anthony
Tale of a quirky New York boy (savant-like, possibly has Aspergers) whose passion in life is playing the elaborate games that his father sets up for him. After the father perishes in the World Trade Center on 9/11, the boy finds a key that he believes must be a clue left for him by Dad. He embarks on a city-wide quest to find out what the key unlocks, encountering all sorts of people along the way. For a while, he is accompanied by a mute old man with a mysterious past. Meanwhile, his relationship with his mother is deteriorating.
I have read several reviews of this film that scold it for exploiting the 9/11 tragedy for dramatic purposes, much as Roberto Benigni was trashed for supposedly making light of the holocaust in Life Is Beautiful. To be honest, I don't get that line of criticism. This is a good movie (not a great one) but it requires a suspension of disbelief because so much of it is logically implausible -- much like, say, Slumdog Millionaire. The film is all about emotion and how we deal with tragedies that leave gaping holes in our lives, which is especially acute for someone as young as the central character here. Worth seeing, although I am surprised it was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar.
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
I am a huge fan of John Le Carre's novels (although I have not read this one) so I knew I would like this film. It did not disappoint. Like all of his stories, there are so many characters that it can be a challenge to keep track of them, but for me that is the fun. This one takes place in the early 1970s and deals with the search for a Soviet mole highly-placed within MI-6. The film unfolds much as I imagine the novel does, with long background stories played out in flashback. Gary Oldman is excellent as George Smiley, the stoic spy leading the search for the mole. As we all here know, this type of story is anti-Bond spy fiction, with it's emphasis on the drudgery of espionage and the overall "grayness" of everything, be it 1973 London (still only 18 years after the war) or the moral zones in which the characters operate. Definitely recommend this one.
I was all set to buy Le Carre's Tinker Tailor novel recently - then I remembered how he'd snubbed Loffelholz and fellow scribes at a writers' convention.... X-(
So I made sure to buy two...
Anyway, The Artist.
This paen to silent movies is as good as they say, very charming. If you haven't seen it you may be behind the curve however, as it really needs a full cinema audience to add to the vibe. It was mostly empty at the West End Vue, so it resembled a disconsolate scene in the film itself. Also, while the Prem screen at the Vue is large enough, the film presents a problem being shot in the old square shape, even squarer than the first three Bond films. I just don't know if there are any old-style cinemas who do that ration any more, so even if you get a large enough screen, you have these black bars down the side that are very distracting...
Jean Dujardin, who some of us fans know from his superb Connery Bond spoof films OSS-117, hold the film and looks just like he's stepped out of a silent movie. His female counterpart on the other hand looks like a modern actress shot in black and white, she even seems in sharper focus, which may be intentional. The plot is really Singing in the Rain, but if Gene Kelly had snubbed talkies while Debbie Reynolds embraces them and goes on to fame and fortune. In fact, if it weren't for the gimmick of being silent, the story would be nothing much, but the fact it is silent makes it. It really is a different viewing experience, you really interact with it more, rather than sitting boredly in your seat while the film does all the work for you.
The music from Vertigo is only in one scene, near the end, and works well. All in all, highly recommended but one to see now, at the weekend, rather than waiting for the DVD.
For those of us who know Terrence Malick this is instantly recognisable: breathtakingly beautiful images, classical music, a stately pace, a voiceover talking about the big issues. This movie is about a couple with three boys living in the 1950`s. The father (Brad Pitt) is hard and oriented towards the self. The mother (Jessica Chastain) is loving and warm. The boys are torn between them. One of the boys dies young, and God and the meaning of life are important themes. There is a long sequence showing the birth of the universe and life on earth that is simply magnificent! In modern times one of the surviving brothers (Sean Penn) finds life empty and he searching for purpose. I think this movie is very ambitious and remarkable. There are few filmmakers who dare take on such weighty themes and Malick does a good job trying to do so. Well worth seing, but sit down andwatch with an open mind and a lot of patience.
Comments
I agree that this episode wasn't as good as last weeks...but it was still a darn good piece of tv....the director was the same...Mark Gatiss wrote this episode though, last weeks was written by chief Dr Who scribe Steven Moffat. It was the pair of them that came up with the idea for updating Sherlock whilst they collaborated on an episode of Dr Who...
But Holmes' schtick is what makes him Holmes...without that it's pretty much just another tv detective show...
Looking forward to next weeks episode....alas it's the last in this series...and could be the last one anyway....Martin Freeman will be rather busy for the forseeable whilst he makes The Hobbit...
Exact same premise as the first film, one of the gang is getting married, boys go out to celebrate and wake up the next day without a clue as to what happened the night before, other than many bad things happened. They then begin searching for clues to try and piece back together the night. As the details of the night unfold we learn it was quite a wild night indeed.
Like most sequels this is not as good as the first one, it was more predictable, the budget was bigger so they had to have more elaborate set pieces like car chases and gun fights, and in an attempt to be funnier some of the humor got more grotesque. That’s not to say I didn’t laugh at times because I did, but I didn’t laugh as much or as hard as I did at the first one.
I don’t think they can stretch this premise any farther, but Hollywood will probably try. Worth a rental.
Appleseed - This is a OVA adaptation of the hit 1980s Manga and so a bit too short (a runtime of only 70 minutes), with inconsistent animation (some scenes it‘s smooth and hyper detailed, other times garish and stodgy). It is set in the post apocalyptic metropolis of Olympus, where two seemingly mismatched but close partners from a ESWAT unit (Deunan - a woman. And Briareos - a hulking cyborg) must take down a terrorist cell that threatens to hijack a experimental mobile weapons platform. The English voice acting can be unintentionally comical in places and unnecessarily foul mouthed (ah, 80s/90s era Manga Studios), but the dub also features the voice talents of Vincent Marzello (he featured other productions such as Taggart and, um, Bob the Builder). And “Olympus” sure gets misspelled a lot. 6/10
Spirited Away - Little wonder this sumptuous anime feature film pushed Studio Ghibli and Japanese animation firmly into the Western mainstream. A very complex looking animation extravaganza bound together by a basic but efficient plot; a young girl (Rumi Hiragi) gets lost in a beautiful but faintly distressing netherworld, seen her parents get turned into pigs, and is desperately finding a way to escape. Along the way she meets strange, initially threatening beings such as Yubaba and No-Face, in addition to allies such as Haku, who helps participate in the workings of Yubaba’s immense bathhouse (the haunt of strange Japanese spirits and demi-gods) . The netherworld, mainly set around a elaborate bathhouse, is a good example of less being more in terms of great fictional world building. 10/10
Relatively small budget film with some big name actors that tells the story of a few key players at a New York investment bank at the beginning of the financial crisis.
When a young investment banker discovers the firm is way over leveraged and could collapse, it begins a 24 hour period of executive clashes, soul searching, firings and a rush to unload all the bad investments in one day. The film does an excellent job of creating an atmosphere of fear, hopelessness and greed.
According to IMDB, the film was made for less than 4 million dollars, which is surprising because the cast is loaded with excellent actors, including Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, Paul Bettany, Demi Moore and Stanley Tucci. The actors are the key to the movie as they all are excellent at capturing the ruthlessness of the investment banking world. I especially enjoyed Paul Bettany.
Recommend
2010 drama about downsizing at a Boston conglomerate with its roots in shipbuilding. The laid-off people are mostly white-collar workers with long tenure who are unprepared for unemployment. They are not totally sympathetic (Ben Affleck has to sell his Porsche and drop out of the country club, poor fellow, and initially sneers at the thought of working as a carpenter with his brother-in-law) but neither are they complete jerks either. A strong cast includes Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper and Kevin Costner. Affleck is expecially good - he's an underrated actor IMO.
Up In The Air did the downsizing thing a bit better, but this is a good film. Not great, but worth a watch.
Doug Glatt (Seann William Scott) isn't the brightest of sparks, which makes him the black sheep of his super-brainy family. Working as a bouncer, good-natured Canadian Doug's life is going nowhere until he steps in to defend his wasted best friend Pat (Jay Baruchel) at an ice hockey game. His lethal right hook attracts attention and he soon finds himself recruited to a disunited team of misfits called the Halifax Highlanders. Doug's role isn't to play the game - it's to beat up the opposition
Was an OK watch, not great would say 6.5 out of 10. Perhaps it's because we don't have ice hockey here.
let's just say...I'm a pirate :P
mountainburdphotography.wordpress.com
Come on guys! Pay for your viewings so there can continue to be quality content to view! Things are getting pricey out there, so if we want awesomely high budgeted stuff, we must support the creators and not steal.
Sherlock holmes 2-I liked it, pretty much like what you guys said about it. It's left open for a next one.
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
Fletch 2 although funny in places is not as Good.
yeah, its like that. I also hate movies which are suppousdley a sequel of one, but none of the same characters, orginization or even country as the first. Like wild geese with roger moore, wild geese 2 was just awful.
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
Excellent if disturbing thriller about a serial killer who chooses his victims based on the seven deadly sins.
I think this was David Fincher at his best blending the private lives of two very different homicide detectives with a mysterious killer whose identity we learn later in the film (I won't name the actor but I will say that he is perfectly cast and he would have made a better Hannibal Lecter than Anthony Hopkins).
It isn't one for the faint-hearted as the violence as well as the subtext are very shocking. But this outlins how evil the villain really is. And the variety of action scenes gives it a very complete feel and keeps one leaning off the edge of one's seat.
My one complaint is that I find Brad Pitt rather emotionless and unconvincing.
Nonetheless, Seven is required viewing for film fans but definitely not for kids.
Film that tells the true story of Billy Beane, played by Brad Pitt, the General Manager of the Oakland A's a major league baseball team with a small budget trying to compete against the likes of the New York Yankees and their 100 million dollar budget. Beane meets a computer geek, played superbly by Jonah Hill, who has developed a computer program to analyze player's production. Beane hires him and they start re-assembling the team based on computer projections. Initially met with skepticism, the team goes on to win their division and forever change how baseball teams assemble teams and analyze players.
Beane is an interesting character, a onetime projected baseball superstar who ultimately failed in the major league, the experience of being told he would be great and not living up to that hype has haunted him ever since. That experience leads him to lack faith in the analysis of scouts and rely on computer numbers.
I don't think you need to be a baseball fan to enjoy this film, it is more about one man’s attempt to try something new and the resistance he faces, then it is about baseball. I really enjoyed the film and highly recommend it.
Still, gripping stuff for the most part, and did succeed in making me doubt Sherlock, no small achievement.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
It is funny and good, but totally mis-marketed. Its trailers make it look like it is all about the bridesmaids and is a bit of a Hangover-with-women sort of thing, but instead it is more about Kristen Wiig's troubled character. Some of those troubles come from her being the Maid of Honor, but much of what is shown is more in romantic comedy territory of just her life. It is worth a watch if you want to see some of the antics between all the bridesmaids, but know that it is really about Kristen Wiig's character hitting rock bottom and trying to get out of it, all while dealing with a nutty wedding party.
A somewhat mannered, elegaic, retro take on the Le Carre novel by the director of The Lives of Others. Watching it, I couldn't help wishing The Living Daylights had been shot in such a way, and QoS too, wonderful photography and atmosphere.
An amazing Brit cast too - everyone from Batman's Gary Oldman to Only Fools and Horses' Trigger via Sherlock's Benedict Cumberbatch and Batman's Tom Hardy (what thick pouty lips he has!)
But it isn't quite all that, it's hard to follow sometimes and there are so many characters it's hard to get a hold on them. This kind of story works better slow-burning over several weeks so you get to know them all and feel a sense of betrayal when you know who the 'mole' is. Here you don't really, and some forced flashbacks to happier times seem a phoney way of doing nostalgia, to evoke a feeling that hasn't been earned (Chesterton's definition of sentiment).
Still, a great looking film to settle down and watch in a seedy London cinema.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
I think that was the least of our questions by the end of the episode
Rumours are rife with how it ended, and there are MANY questions still unanswered... which of course makes us wonder
However, we still never found out why the little girl screamed, even though it was proved that Sherlock hadn't seen her before... and of course Molly was asked to help... but we don't know how. And how convienient was it that Watson was run over... and concussed!
Good luck in trying to better the UK version...you'll need it !
Well, it had my palms wet to be fair! I found it exciting alright, but not moving at all. Mind you, I'd settle for sex like that.
Actually, I'd settle for sex.
It's the Cruise brand, it's like an empty battery that gets recharged with new characters around him. I prefer this team to the last unmemorable lot, but they don't gel too well cos you just think, well, there'll be another lot next time. The opener in a Serbian gaol seems to be Cruise auditioning for the Jack Rancher role, all bulked up and knocking out prisoners and guards and so on. Simon Pegg is the boffin but a lot of the humour seems a bit inappropriate because the director doesn't know how to set up the expectation of humour, if feels a bit lame. Also, you can't help thinking that the team are chosen to not be taller than Cruise, at which they succeed.
Really, this is like three episodes of a big-budget Hustle strung together, with the hoariest McGuffin in the book - Russian nuclear codes. 8-) The cinemtography wasn't too great or lovely to look at, and the Imax experience I can't really get the hang of, the screen goes deep when there's some big vista but it seems a bit tacky to me, plus it destroys the suspenion of disbelief. Cruise doesn't have many layers as an actor and the crucial thing is you don't really quite believe any of it and I'm not sure you're supposed to but it's all mighty earnest.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Rather enjoyable, love Robert Downey Junior though, I can't help it :x
As for tv, it would be, The Saint
In "Haywire" we get a fight in a hotel room followed by a chase across some Dublin rooftops.
Similar to;
Taken, QOS, and all the Bourne movies, Same basic lighting set ups and editing, as if all the
Thrillers where now blending together as One generic type. Until another Tarantino comes
along with a few New ideas.
Loved the music in Haywire, very 70's Tv cop show. It reminded me of the professionals or
New Avengers.
George Clooney directs and stars in this political drama, where everyone is out for themselves and a knife in the back is common place.
Clooney plays Governor Mike Morris, a liberal Democrat, who is running for the Democratic nomination for President. Morris is in a tight battle in the Ohio primary when his media director, played by Ryan Gosling, uncovers a secret about the Governor. We soon learn that in politics the only loyalty is to one’s self.
Despite the excellent cast, which includes, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Ward, the film never develops any real tension. The pacing of the film is slow, with many long conversations between the main players where we see how everyone is mostly interested in trying to make themselves look good.
The excellent cast and their work in the film make this worth a rental, but I was underwhelmed.
-Casino Royale, Ian Fleming
I know this is a late post.... but I've just finished watching the last one tonight. It was 3 'takes' on different 'could be's'
The first was about a ransom demand, aimed at the prime minister, in return for the Duchess of Cambridge's life.... a very interesting one at that...
The second was a satirical look at what people would do to get onto a show like the X factor (to it's extreme)
And the third was a look at what life would be like if we were 'grainied' - a small device planted in our brain so that we could remember and re-live our entire past....
Interesting concepts, with all rather negative results, however, the star of the second episode (and in fact one of the daughters in Downton Abbey) sung this rendition of Irma Thomas - Anyone who know what love is (will understand)
here
Thought I would share....
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
Tale of a quirky New York boy (savant-like, possibly has Aspergers) whose passion in life is playing the elaborate games that his father sets up for him. After the father perishes in the World Trade Center on 9/11, the boy finds a key that he believes must be a clue left for him by Dad. He embarks on a city-wide quest to find out what the key unlocks, encountering all sorts of people along the way. For a while, he is accompanied by a mute old man with a mysterious past. Meanwhile, his relationship with his mother is deteriorating.
I have read several reviews of this film that scold it for exploiting the 9/11 tragedy for dramatic purposes, much as Roberto Benigni was trashed for supposedly making light of the holocaust in Life Is Beautiful. To be honest, I don't get that line of criticism. This is a good movie (not a great one) but it requires a suspension of disbelief because so much of it is logically implausible -- much like, say, Slumdog Millionaire. The film is all about emotion and how we deal with tragedies that leave gaping holes in our lives, which is especially acute for someone as young as the central character here. Worth seeing, although I am surprised it was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar.
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
I am a huge fan of John Le Carre's novels (although I have not read this one) so I knew I would like this film. It did not disappoint. Like all of his stories, there are so many characters that it can be a challenge to keep track of them, but for me that is the fun. This one takes place in the early 1970s and deals with the search for a Soviet mole highly-placed within MI-6. The film unfolds much as I imagine the novel does, with long background stories played out in flashback. Gary Oldman is excellent as George Smiley, the stoic spy leading the search for the mole. As we all here know, this type of story is anti-Bond spy fiction, with it's emphasis on the drudgery of espionage and the overall "grayness" of everything, be it 1973 London (still only 18 years after the war) or the moral zones in which the characters operate. Definitely recommend this one.
So I made sure to buy two...
Anyway, The Artist.
This paen to silent movies is as good as they say, very charming. If you haven't seen it you may be behind the curve however, as it really needs a full cinema audience to add to the vibe. It was mostly empty at the West End Vue, so it resembled a disconsolate scene in the film itself. Also, while the Prem screen at the Vue is large enough, the film presents a problem being shot in the old square shape, even squarer than the first three Bond films. I just don't know if there are any old-style cinemas who do that ration any more, so even if you get a large enough screen, you have these black bars down the side that are very distracting...
Jean Dujardin, who some of us fans know from his superb Connery Bond spoof films OSS-117, hold the film and looks just like he's stepped out of a silent movie. His female counterpart on the other hand looks like a modern actress shot in black and white, she even seems in sharper focus, which may be intentional. The plot is really Singing in the Rain, but if Gene Kelly had snubbed talkies while Debbie Reynolds embraces them and goes on to fame and fortune. In fact, if it weren't for the gimmick of being silent, the story would be nothing much, but the fact it is silent makes it. It really is a different viewing experience, you really interact with it more, rather than sitting boredly in your seat while the film does all the work for you.
The music from Vertigo is only in one scene, near the end, and works well. All in all, highly recommended but one to see now, at the weekend, rather than waiting for the DVD.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
For those of us who know Terrence Malick this is instantly recognisable: breathtakingly beautiful images, classical music, a stately pace, a voiceover talking about the big issues. This movie is about a couple with three boys living in the 1950`s. The father (Brad Pitt) is hard and oriented towards the self. The mother (Jessica Chastain) is loving and warm. The boys are torn between them. One of the boys dies young, and God and the meaning of life are important themes. There is a long sequence showing the birth of the universe and life on earth that is simply magnificent! In modern times one of the surviving brothers (Sean Penn) finds life empty and he searching for purpose. I think this movie is very ambitious and remarkable. There are few filmmakers who dare take on such weighty themes and Malick does a good job trying to do so. Well worth seing, but sit down andwatch with an open mind and a lot of patience.