Friday, 1 June 2012
GB Posters Blog - The Queen
GB Posters are celebrating the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and asked if I could write something for them. I thought about it and asked some people for suggestions and decided I'd write a review of The Queen, a film I hadn't seen but had heard was very good. You can visit GB Posters and see what I thought by clicking on the link below.
http://www.gbposters.com/blog/jubilee-review-the-queen
And you can read my other reviews for the website by clicking on the GB Posters tab on the right of this page.
The Road
"You think I come from another world, don't you?"

I first saw this film in the cinema a couple of years ago
and was blown away by its bleakness and beauty. I’ve mentioned before how much
I love the look of decaying beauty and there are few films that show that so
much as this. The screen is filled with various shades of grey and the sun
never shines. The backdrop to the family’s struggle is filled with decrepit
landscapes ruined by an unknown catastrophic event. These scenes are further heightened
by flash backs to before the event in which Mortensen and his wife Charlize
Theron are seen to be enjoying life in a colourful and vibrant world. Other
flashbacks show life in the years after the apocalypse during which Theron is
pregnant and subsequently where she struggles to deal with her harsh new
surroundings.
Labels:
2009,
7/10,
Charlize Theron,
Drama,
Film,
Guy Pearce,
John Hillcoat,
Michael K. Williams,
Movie,
Review,
Robert Duvall,
The Road,
Viggo Mortensen
Wednesday, 30 May 2012
Paris, Texas
"You just... disappeared. And now I'm working here. I hear your voice all the time. Every man has your voice"

In many ways this film reminded me of director Wim Wenders
1976 film Kings of the Road. Both
films take place mostly on the road in quiet, almost desolate places with two
characters who barely know each other. This film is more about the family unit
and loss but is equally as good. The film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes as well as
numerous other prizes and it’s fantastic.
Labels:
1984,
9/10,
Aurore Clement,
Dean Stockwell,
Drama,
Film,
Harry Dean Stanton,
Hunter Carson,
Movie,
Nastassja Kinski,
Paris Texas,
Review,
Wim Wenders
Tuesday, 29 May 2012
Alien Resurrection
"What's inside me? What's inside me?!!"

I was massively disappointed with Alien 3 (although FilmsRruss tells me that the Director’s Cut is
much better than the theatrical version I saw) and Alien Resurrection seemed to be going in the same direction. I
found the first half really boring and actually fell asleep after about 40
minutes. After I resumed viewing however, I really enjoyed the second half.
Monday, 28 May 2012
Men in Black 3
"Just 'cos you see a black man in a nice car, don't mean it's stolen. I mean this one is..."


GB Posters Blog - This is Spinal Tap
GB Posters are having a rock week and asked me to write a rock related blog post. There was only one film that I could write about and that is the masterpiece rockumentary This is Spinal Tap.
Click on the link below to read my Spinal Tap piece and check out GB Posters.
http://www.gbposters.com/blog/blog-spinal-tap
The Champion
Chaplin’s third Essanay picture and he finally appears to
have found his feet with the new studio. Chaplin’s tramp, destitute and famished
spots a sign offering money to act as a sparring partner. He watches as three
men go in before him and return battered and bruised. Chaplin however has a
trick up his sleeve or rather in his glove; a lucky horseshoe, which he uses to
knock out his larger, more adept opponent. Spotting his potential a trainer
prepares the slight Chaplin for a big fight against the champion Bob Uppercut
(Bud Jamison) but Chaplin has other things on his mind, namely the trainer’s
daughter Edna Purviance.
I was so glad that this film was good. I was really
disappointed with Chaplin’s first two Essanay films His New Job and A Night Out.
This is a real return to form. The idea was actually taken from a Fred Karno
sketch that Chaplin performed before entering the movie industry. Perhaps one
of the reasons for the film’s success is that Chaplin knew what he was doing
before he went in rather than partially making it up as he went along.
Labels:
1915,
6/10,
Ben Turpin,
Bud Jamison,
Charlie Chaplin,
Edna Purviance,
Ernest Van Pelt,
Film,
Leo White,
Movie,
Review,
Short Film,
Silent Comedy,
The Champion
Saturday, 26 May 2012
Moonrise Kingdom
"What kind of bird are you?"

I should say from the outset that I am a huge Wes Anderson
fan and have absolutely loved all of his films with the exception of Fantastic Mr Fox so I went in expecting
great things. My expectations were matched and even perhaps exceeded. I loved
this film. Anderson
sets up Suzy’s home life in a fantastic opening sequence which features some exquisite
tracking shots through the family home. Before anything is said it is already
obvious to the audience that Suzy is a loner who longs for something bigger,
something more. Her parents do not get on and are never even seen in the same
room, let alone talking to each other. She has three younger brothers who
appear to get along very well. Her house is large and well furnished,
indicating wealth if not happiness. All of this is established in one long
sequence of beautiful camera movements which last no longer than a couple of
minutes. Sam’s life with his Scout troupe is shown in a similar manner although
it soon becomes apparent that he has already escaped in search of his love,
Suzy.
The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo
"Why would
they remake something when they can just go see the original?" - Niels
Arden Oplev

This is a good film but I have many problems with it. The
first and most major problem is that there is no reason for its existence. The
novel The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was
made into an excellent feature film (review here) in 2009 and this version
brings nothing new to the table except that it is in English for all the
stupid/lazy tw*ts who can’t be arsed reading subtitles. I do not see the point
in making this film other than to fill the pockets of Hollywood and to further dumb down English
speaking audiences. It isn’t even as though the Swedish version is difficult to
come by. I spotted it in my local HMV for less that £5 just a few days ago. It.
Is. Pointless.
Thursday, 24 May 2012
A Night Out
Charlie Chaplin’s second film for Essanay saw him move
production to their Californian studios for the first time. Chaplin and Ben
Turpin are on a night out and end up getting very drunk. They go to a nice
restaurant where they cause trouble for a smartly dressed gentleman. The head
waiter arrives and throws the pair out but not before Chaplin has caught sight
of the waiter’s girlfriend Edna Purviance. Back at their hotel Chaplin and
Turpin bump into Purviance once more and again cause trouble for themselves and
get thrown out of their hotel. Onto another hotel and Chaplin alone this time
meets Purviance again, but will the waiter get in the way of his affections?
This film is a bit of a mess, though it isn’t easy to say to
what extent this is Chaplin’s fault and how much time is to blame. The version
I saw seems to have been made up of three or four different copies and as a
result it changes from black and white to sepia and back quite often. The
editing is also pretty poor, often cutting away in the middle of a gag. The
story also makes little sense and Turpin just disappeared altogether half way
through the film. Most of the gags are simple door in face or fist in face sort
of things which is a shame.

Labels:
1915,
4/10,
Ben Turpin,
Bud Jamison,
Charlie Chaplin,
Edna Purviance,
Leo White,
Short Film,
Silent Comedy
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