Just watched World War Z ( watched it in the cinema a few months ago ) and
Enjoyed it more the second time ( and I liked it the first time) ) , noticed in the
Credits that the 2nd unit director was Simone Crane who also worked on
GoldenEye and TWINE. {[]
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
The Adjustment Bureau :
Not what I was expecting, as I thought it would be a " matrix" type thriller.
Sadly it's basically a love story, bit of a disappointment for me.
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy and the rest of the gang return for another adventure, this time facing off against Electro and a few more baddies along the way, all while trying to reconcile their messed up feelings for one another.
This movie was very much a mixed bag for me. Spiderman has always been equal parts high octane action with a few one liners thrown in, mixed with heavy does of relationship angst and teen drama. When the movie has Spiderman swinging thru New York, doing battle with all manner of super-powered villains, its an entertaining ride. When it stops so that our characters can express (or fail to express as so often happens) their feelings for one another, time seems to slow to a crawl. Ultimately it is this lack of a proper balance of action to character moments that drops this film down a few pegs.
Characterwise, Peter is once again the very much conflicted hero, trying to balance his self-imposed responsibility to protect his city while also trying to cope with his conflicted feelings about having a relationship with his love Gwen Stacy after promising her father that he would let her go to keep her safe in the prior movie. Gwen is your typical strong-willed girlfriend, wise beyond her years, insisting on sharing in the danger and generally making life difficult for our hero.
The villains are very much a mixed bag. Electro, formerly known as Max Dillon before an accident turns him into a living electrical circuit, is an odd duck: a socially outcast borderline psycho-stalker, we really don't get to know him or just what his motivations are, beyond a general anger over not being noticed. Once transformed, he only has two action scenes and his ultimate resolution comes across as abrupt and unsatisfying. Paul Giamatti's Aleksei Sytsevich, aka the Rhino, has less than five minutes of screentime (don't let the trailers fool you). Faring the best is, barely, Dane DeHaan as Harry Osborne, Peter's childhood friend, heir to the Osborne empire and ultimately the Green Goblin. His story arc is the most detailed and his ultimate turn to evil has a hint of tragedy to it. But even here, his descent into evil and madness happens so fast that it never really feels genuinely thought out or organic; instead its largely an excuse to introduce another villain that Spidey temorarily dispaches but who clearly will have more to do in a future film.
The 3D is a mixed bag as well. When Spiderman is swinging thru the canyons of New York, web-shooting his way into action, there is a very strong sense of depth and some nice pop-out effects. When the action slows down the sense of dimensionality likewise drops off.
The film was written and produced by, among other people, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, two very popular but utterly unoriginal hacks on the Hollywood scene whose "accomplishments" include the Star Trek reboot, and the film suffers for it as it presents but fails to advance idea after idea (what happened to Peter's parents, Peter's relationship with Aunt May, Norman Osborne's endgame, where is Curt Connors, where is Electro, what about all those prototype military suits, etc.). At the end of the day, despite a length of nearly two and a half hours, the whole thing just feels like a rushed, glorified setup for another movie where Spiderman must take on a sinister sextet (hint hint) of baddies.
So while The Amazing Spiderman 2 is still superior to the Sam Raimi agnst-fests and Andrew Garfield's Peter never descends to the human dishrag levels of Tobey Maguire, this is still very much an inferior comic-book movie presentation when compared to the movies that Marvel is producing themselves such as Captain America, the Avengers and so on, which usually manage to get that critical balance between character and action just right.
I'll meet it halfway: two and a half out of five stars.
The Adjustment Bureau :
Not what I was expecting, as I thought it would be a " matrix" type thriller.
Sadly it's basically a love story, bit of a disappointment for me.
I loved this movie... it must be a girl thing )
On a recent trip home to Victoria (Vancouver Island) I got to watch a few movies;
The Secret life of Walter Mitty;
A surprisingly quirky, funny movie starring Ben Stiller (I'm not usually a fan of Ben Stiller, but he was really likeable in this) - and tells a story of a very boring/put upon magazine photo editor (who spends most of his life day dreaming of being the hero, or in some romantic clinch with his sexy co-worker) who seemingly misplaces a very important photo, which was contributed by a high flying real life hero/photo journalist. We then follow him in his search for this misplaced pic, and the adventures he gets up to, to achieve this. I'm not going to give the ending away... (although the final reveal is overly sentimental IMO) it made me chuckle... and certainly helped with the 10 hour flight
Enough Said
A great little comedy, starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, James Gandolfini and Toni Collette and is one of the best comedies I've seen in a while. Smart, clever and bittersweet, it follows 2 down on their luck in love people, who seemingly make a great match. Until Julia's character befriends her new boyfriends ex-wife... and gets to hear of all the annoying habits, which she then sees for herself. Laugh out loud funny... and would def recommend.
Trance
Mmmmm, not sure about this movie. It had tones of Inception (but instead of dreams, the protagonists were hypnotised) and elements of Black Swan (with the bouts of goriness) and you're left with wondering who was in a trance right up until the end. The story is of a robbery of a painting, and the 'thief' who then can't remember where he put the painting. You then soon realise that this person was set up, from way back, and none of his actions leading up to the theft were random, instead they were controlled by the powerful hypnotherapist - Rosario Dawson. I have to say, the baddie, played by Vincent Cassel would make a great villain for Bond... menacing enough, and an equal opponent for sure.
She's worth whatever chaos she brings to the table and you know it. ~ Mark Anthony
I'd left watching this as I'd been told it had gotten very mixed reviews.
It's an Alien prequel, not as good as that film but still a great adventure,
it gives the old story a new twist. I enjoyed it. {[]
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
Absolutely brilliant human drama. Amazing that it took a power-house American director to make a European story. And phenomenal performances in what is essentially a two-hander. Bruhl is Oscar-worthy as Lauda and in Hemsworth I think we have found our new Bond, if only because:
1. He's aged well under 40 so no need for any stupid, unbelievable story lines ie. He might look 45 but he realllyyyy is a rookie MI6 agent.
2. He's blonde.
3. He can do an English accent
4. He's properly good looking. So no need for make-believe.
5. He's tall. So again, no need for lets-pretend nor the cameraman to be a contortionist.
6. He's fit. So no need for BB to look sheepishly embarrassed.
But, the biggy: he CAN act AND the Yanks in the multi-plexes will have heard of him because he's been in some pop-corn comic book rubbish.
You think James Bond could be played as a Scotsman in future?
Possibly. Though I doubt EON would allow it for the Connery comparishons (or, to rephrase, opportunities for piss-taking), I do think any Scots actor would dilute the natural accent, much as Brozza did. And I can't really see an English actor Scottishing-up (see the Connery point).
For better or worse, cinema James Bond is always likely to sound "English".
You think James Bond could be played as a Scotsman in future?
Possibly. Though I doubt EON would allow it for the Connery comparishons (or, to rephrase, opportunities for piss-taking), I do think any Scots actor would dilute the natural accent, much as Brozza did. And I can't really see an English actor Scottishing-up (see the Connery point).
For better or worse, cinema James Bond is always likely to sound "English".
Not every Shcottish... er, Scottish actor sounds like SC. In fact, nobody does. Ewan McGregor, Gerard Butler, Dougray Scott, Robert Carlyle, Robbie Coltrane have all had movie success without being compared with him, and a few of those were rumoured Bond candidates at one time or another (no, not Carlyle or Coltrane although they did end up as other characters- Butler's tiny part in TND hardly counts).
James Bond should sound British; not necessarily English, which he isn't. Brosnan did a fair job covering his natural accent, Lazenby less so. And I'd query whether Connery ever even tried, regardless of where he was in his career- he certainly worked on it for clarity, as any actor should, and not for trying to hide his origins.
You think James Bond could be played as a Scotsman in future?
Possibly. Though I doubt EON would allow it for the Connery comparishons (or, to rephrase, opportunities for piss-taking), I do think any Scots actor would dilute the natural accent, much as Brozza did. And I can't really see an English actor Scottishing-up (see the Connery point).
For better or worse, cinema James Bond is always likely to sound "English".
Not every Shcottish... er, Scottish actor sounds like SC. In fact, nobody does. Ewan McGregor, Gerard Butler, Dougray Scott, Robert Carlyle, Robbie Coltrane have all had movie success without being compared.with him, and a few of those were rumoured Bond candidates at one time or another (no, not Carlyle or Coltrane ) although they did end up as other characters- Butler's tiny part in TND hardly counts).
James Bond should sound British; not necessarily English, which he isn't. Brosnan did a fair job covering his natural accent, Lazenby less so. And I'd query whether Connery even ever tried, regardless of where he was in his career- he certainly worked on it for clarity, as any actor should, and not for trying to hide his origins.
Convinced Connery didn't play James Bond in DN as a Scotsman*; concede that the mild lilt of McGregor, Butler and Scott would work as Bond (though other factors might conspire against each) And despite the naffness of shoe-horning some lit backstory into SKYFALL, I doubt EON would ever have the courage to play up the Scottishness, and hence dilute the "Englishness" of their Bond.
And while we're into what Bond should sound like, would it have been acceptable for Sean Bean to have played James Bond in GOLDENEYE with his natural Yorkshire accent? His accent is as English/British as any...
* Christ, Fleming had had Bond CALL himself English in the books up to OHMSS; not many Scotsmen, I suspect, have ever done that
Although Fleming did describe Bond as " ...... A Scottish peasant " in TMWTGG
On being offered a knighthood. so long as Bond doesn't sound American
( sorry guys -{ ) I'd be happy.
I do think it is nice to think that Bond has been Played by an actor from all four
Parts of the UK, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales. ( Australia ? )
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
Home from gigging, ready to deal with Bond requiring an English accent.
Firstly,Fleming specifically states that James Bond had a Scottish father (Andrew Bond) and a Swiss mother (Monique Delacroix). Bond considers himself Scottish (YOLT, TMWTGG) although usually settles for being referred to as English by foreigners (many times, various books specifically CR). Granted Fleming does slip up on occasion, which is not out of character (consistency with details wasn't his strong point; check the colour of the light outside M's office, for example, or the colour of Mary Goodnight's hair).
Secondly, the fact that Bond's ancestry doesn't emerge till OHMSS has been seen as reflecting Connery's casting as Bond- to which I respond that an author can give out character details at any point in his oeuvre. Example- Conan Doyle did not mention Sherlock Holmes' brother Mycroft till seven years after the first story, and Mycroft is a universally accepted part of the Holmes canon.
James Bond therefore does not require an English accent but a BRITISH one- he isn't going to sound Swiss despite having a Swiss mother, having been educated in England (Eton) and Scotland (Fettes). He might sound a little English, or a bit Scottish- that's perfectly in character. A broad Scots accent (and Connery does not have that, he is unique) would be inappropriate, as would a broad Irish one (hence Brosnan's reasonable masking of his native brogue) or a regional English one (Cornwall?).
It is my position that the words ENGLISH and BRITISH are not interchangeable; an actor from, say, USA or Germany, does not require to sound English to play James Bond.
You are, of course, right. Due to Fleming's reaction to Connery, lip service must always be paid to the Scottish ancestry you describe, despite Bond having always described himself as English to that point and in YOLT goes on to laud the achievements of the "English" (note, not the British), to Tiger You will also note that in his three post DN the movie novels, no reference is made to Bond's eyes being blue or comma of hair so maybe he also has Connery brown eyes and toupee now )
Of course, the Scottishness has never been played on in the movies (thanks, I think, to the ease of spoofing Connery) and James Bond worldwide being the ultimate quintessential "English" hero, for marketing purposes. Hence my remark about Sean Bean not being able to play James Bond as a Sheffield lad in GOLDENEYE. And hence my original remark about Hemsworth's ability to do an English accent.
Interestingly, you say Bond shouldn't sound Swiss; like me you'll be old enough to remember French actor Lambert Wilson screen testing for TLD. At that time Wilson had a French accent (at least he did in FIVE DAYS ONE SUMMER). I wonder had he got the part whether EON would have played up the SWISS part of Bond's background....?
Yes, I'm old enough! I wonder how that would have worked out?
More contradictions in Fleming exist, of course, especially in YOLT (eg Bond's remark about Scotland to Tiger as they prepare to play scissor-paper-stone), but it would take too long to go into them all. Totally agree re the movies playing down Bond's ancestry and why.
As I said earlier, Sean Bean would have been a better choice than many of the prospective Bonds bandied about (with wildly varying degrees of accuracy) in the media - he's not the kind of guy you'd pick a fight with and looks perfectly capable of demolishing several mooks without blinking, and could believably charm the requisite number of women. He certainly can act, although isn't often called upon to do that, and of course he dies well- which wouldn't be necessary for Bond ) . His accent does come and go a bit, true.
IMHO I wouldn't have picked him over Brosnan, although (cue sighs from regular readers) I would have picked him over Craig, age aside.
Convinced Bean was Barbara Broccoli's proto-Craig Bond and that she would have gone with him in GOLDENEYE and done what they've done since CR with him. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough clout in Bond then (thanks, Pierce, you've just made youself redundant. BB 2005) and the Hollywood suits got their Brozza-Bond.
And if you want the proper rebooted James Bond, the real post-modern 007, see Bean in CLEANSKIN. Charlotte Rampling is genuinely the M that most Bond fans have convinced themselves Dench is
Wilson? Looked the part. The accent, though.... But hey, I'd got so stalled off with Rog by '83 I'd have had Brolin in OCTOPUSSY!!!!!!!!!!
Comments
( only members of a certain age will understand )
Enjoyed it more the second time ( and I liked it the first time)
Credits that the 2nd unit director was Simone Crane who also worked on
GoldenEye and TWINE. {[]
Not what I was expecting, as I thought it would be a " matrix" type thriller.
Sadly it's basically a love story, bit of a disappointment for me.
To leave the theatre.
Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy and the rest of the gang return for another adventure, this time facing off against Electro and a few more baddies along the way, all while trying to reconcile their messed up feelings for one another.
This movie was very much a mixed bag for me. Spiderman has always been equal parts high octane action with a few one liners thrown in, mixed with heavy does of relationship angst and teen drama. When the movie has Spiderman swinging thru New York, doing battle with all manner of super-powered villains, its an entertaining ride. When it stops so that our characters can express (or fail to express as so often happens) their feelings for one another, time seems to slow to a crawl. Ultimately it is this lack of a proper balance of action to character moments that drops this film down a few pegs.
Characterwise, Peter is once again the very much conflicted hero, trying to balance his self-imposed responsibility to protect his city while also trying to cope with his conflicted feelings about having a relationship with his love Gwen Stacy after promising her father that he would let her go to keep her safe in the prior movie. Gwen is your typical strong-willed girlfriend, wise beyond her years, insisting on sharing in the danger and generally making life difficult for our hero.
The villains are very much a mixed bag. Electro, formerly known as Max Dillon before an accident turns him into a living electrical circuit, is an odd duck: a socially outcast borderline psycho-stalker, we really don't get to know him or just what his motivations are, beyond a general anger over not being noticed. Once transformed, he only has two action scenes and his ultimate resolution comes across as abrupt and unsatisfying. Paul Giamatti's Aleksei Sytsevich, aka the Rhino, has less than five minutes of screentime (don't let the trailers fool you). Faring the best is, barely, Dane DeHaan as Harry Osborne, Peter's childhood friend, heir to the Osborne empire and ultimately the Green Goblin. His story arc is the most detailed and his ultimate turn to evil has a hint of tragedy to it. But even here, his descent into evil and madness happens so fast that it never really feels genuinely thought out or organic; instead its largely an excuse to introduce another villain that Spidey temorarily dispaches but who clearly will have more to do in a future film.
The 3D is a mixed bag as well. When Spiderman is swinging thru the canyons of New York, web-shooting his way into action, there is a very strong sense of depth and some nice pop-out effects. When the action slows down the sense of dimensionality likewise drops off.
The film was written and produced by, among other people, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, two very popular but utterly unoriginal hacks on the Hollywood scene whose "accomplishments" include the Star Trek reboot, and the film suffers for it as it presents but fails to advance idea after idea (what happened to Peter's parents, Peter's relationship with Aunt May, Norman Osborne's endgame, where is Curt Connors, where is Electro, what about all those prototype military suits, etc.). At the end of the day, despite a length of nearly two and a half hours, the whole thing just feels like a rushed, glorified setup for another movie where Spiderman must take on a sinister sextet (hint hint) of baddies.
So while The Amazing Spiderman 2 is still superior to the Sam Raimi agnst-fests and Andrew Garfield's Peter never descends to the human dishrag levels of Tobey Maguire, this is still very much an inferior comic-book movie presentation when compared to the movies that Marvel is producing themselves such as Captain America, the Avengers and so on, which usually manage to get that critical balance between character and action just right.
I'll meet it halfway: two and a half out of five stars.
I thought that was you ,during the end of toy story 3
may have remained stiff but my bottom one was wobbling all
Over the place!
I loved this movie... it must be a girl thing
On a recent trip home to Victoria (Vancouver Island) I got to watch a few movies;
The Secret life of Walter Mitty;
A surprisingly quirky, funny movie starring Ben Stiller (I'm not usually a fan of Ben Stiller, but he was really likeable in this) - and tells a story of a very boring/put upon magazine photo editor (who spends most of his life day dreaming of being the hero, or in some romantic clinch with his sexy co-worker) who seemingly misplaces a very important photo, which was contributed by a high flying real life hero/photo journalist. We then follow him in his search for this misplaced pic, and the adventures he gets up to, to achieve this. I'm not going to give the ending away... (although the final reveal is overly sentimental IMO) it made me chuckle... and certainly helped with the 10 hour flight
Enough Said
A great little comedy, starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, James Gandolfini and Toni Collette and is one of the best comedies I've seen in a while. Smart, clever and bittersweet, it follows 2 down on their luck in love people, who seemingly make a great match. Until Julia's character befriends her new boyfriends ex-wife... and gets to hear of all the annoying habits, which she then sees for herself. Laugh out loud funny... and would def recommend.
Trance
Mmmmm, not sure about this movie. It had tones of Inception (but instead of dreams, the protagonists were hypnotised) and elements of Black Swan (with the bouts of goriness) and you're left with wondering who was in a trance right up until the end. The story is of a robbery of a painting, and the 'thief' who then can't remember where he put the painting. You then soon realise that this person was set up, from way back, and none of his actions leading up to the theft were random, instead they were controlled by the powerful hypnotherapist - Rosario Dawson. I have to say, the baddie, played by Vincent Cassel would make a great villain for Bond... menacing enough, and an equal opponent for sure.
I'd left watching this as I'd been told it had gotten very mixed reviews.
It's an Alien prequel, not as good as that film but still a great adventure,
it gives the old story a new twist. I enjoyed it. {[]
Absolutely brilliant human drama. Amazing that it took a power-house American director to make a European story. And phenomenal performances in what is essentially a two-hander. Bruhl is Oscar-worthy as Lauda and in Hemsworth I think we have found our new Bond, if only because:
1. He's aged well under 40 so no need for any stupid, unbelievable story lines ie. He might look 45 but he realllyyyy is a rookie MI6 agent.
2. He's blonde.
3. He can do an English accent
4. He's properly good looking. So no need for make-believe.
5. He's tall. So again, no need for lets-pretend nor the cameraman to be a contortionist.
6. He's fit. So no need for BB to look sheepishly embarrassed.
But, the biggy: he CAN act AND the Yanks in the multi-plexes will have heard of him because he's been in some pop-corn comic book rubbish.
8-) Hardly a necessary attribute to play James Bond.
Dunno, mate. Sir Sean tried it (until he could afford not to), so did George and Pierce?
Possibly. Though I doubt EON would allow it for the Connery comparishons (or, to rephrase, opportunities for piss-taking), I do think any Scots actor would dilute the natural accent, much as Brozza did. And I can't really see an English actor Scottishing-up (see the Connery point).
For better or worse, cinema James Bond is always likely to sound "English".
Not every Shcottish... er, Scottish actor sounds like SC. In fact, nobody does. Ewan McGregor, Gerard Butler, Dougray Scott, Robert Carlyle, Robbie Coltrane have all had movie success without being compared with him, and a few of those were rumoured Bond candidates at one time or another (no, not Carlyle or Coltrane
James Bond should sound British; not necessarily English, which he isn't. Brosnan did a fair job covering his natural accent, Lazenby less so. And I'd query whether Connery ever even tried, regardless of where he was in his career- he certainly worked on it for clarity, as any actor should, and not for trying to hide his origins.
Convinced Connery didn't play James Bond in DN as a Scotsman*; concede that the mild lilt of McGregor, Butler and Scott would work as Bond (though other factors might conspire against each) And despite the naffness of shoe-horning some lit backstory into SKYFALL, I doubt EON would ever have the courage to play up the Scottishness, and hence dilute the "Englishness" of their Bond.
And while we're into what Bond should sound like, would it have been acceptable for Sean Bean to have played James Bond in GOLDENEYE with his natural Yorkshire accent? His accent is as English/British as any...
* Christ, Fleming had had Bond CALL himself English in the books up to OHMSS; not many Scotsmen, I suspect, have ever done that
On being offered a knighthood.
( sorry guys -{ ) I'd be happy.
I do think it is nice to think that Bond has been Played by an actor from all four
Parts of the UK, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales. ( Australia ? )
Firstly,Fleming specifically states that James Bond had a Scottish father (Andrew Bond) and a Swiss mother (Monique Delacroix). Bond considers himself Scottish (YOLT, TMWTGG) although usually settles for being referred to as English by foreigners (many times, various books specifically CR). Granted Fleming does slip up on occasion, which is not out of character (consistency with details wasn't his strong point; check the colour of the light outside M's office, for example, or the colour of Mary Goodnight's hair).
Secondly, the fact that Bond's ancestry doesn't emerge till OHMSS has been seen as reflecting Connery's casting as Bond- to which I respond that an author can give out character details at any point in his oeuvre. Example- Conan Doyle did not mention Sherlock Holmes' brother Mycroft till seven years after the first story, and Mycroft is a universally accepted part of the Holmes canon.
James Bond therefore does not require an English accent but a BRITISH one- he isn't going to sound Swiss despite having a Swiss mother, having been educated in England (Eton) and Scotland (Fettes). He might sound a little English, or a bit Scottish- that's perfectly in character. A broad Scots accent (and Connery does not have that, he is unique) would be inappropriate, as would a broad Irish one (hence Brosnan's reasonable masking of his native brogue) or a regional English one (Cornwall?).
It is my position that the words ENGLISH and BRITISH are not interchangeable; an actor from, say, USA or Germany, does not require to sound English to play James Bond.
Of course, the Scottishness has never been played on in the movies (thanks, I think, to the ease of spoofing Connery) and James Bond worldwide being the ultimate quintessential "English" hero, for marketing purposes. Hence my remark about Sean Bean not being able to play James Bond as a Sheffield lad in GOLDENEYE. And hence my original remark about Hemsworth's ability to do an English accent.
Interestingly, you say Bond shouldn't sound Swiss; like me you'll be old enough to remember French actor Lambert Wilson screen testing for TLD. At that time Wilson had a French accent (at least he did in FIVE DAYS ONE SUMMER). I wonder had he got the part whether EON would have played up the SWISS part of Bond's background....?
-{
More contradictions in Fleming exist, of course, especially in YOLT (eg Bond's remark about Scotland to Tiger as they prepare to play scissor-paper-stone), but it would take too long to go into them all. Totally agree re the movies playing down Bond's ancestry and why.
As I said earlier, Sean Bean would have been a better choice than many of the prospective Bonds bandied about (with wildly varying degrees of accuracy) in the media - he's not the kind of guy you'd pick a fight with and looks perfectly capable of demolishing several mooks without blinking, and could believably charm the requisite number of women. He certainly can act, although isn't often called upon to do that, and of course he dies well- which wouldn't be necessary for Bond
IMHO I wouldn't have picked him over Brosnan, although (cue sighs from regular readers) I would have picked him over Craig, age aside.
And if you want the proper rebooted James Bond, the real post-modern 007, see Bean in CLEANSKIN. Charlotte Rampling is genuinely the M that most Bond fans have convinced themselves Dench is
Wilson? Looked the part. The accent, though.... But hey, I'd got so stalled off with Rog by '83 I'd have had Brolin in OCTOPUSSY!!!!!!!!!!