World Trade Center (2006)
Written by James on July 11, 2008 – 6:45 pm -
Center does not hold
Former enfant terrible Oliver Stone would appear to have
re-embraced the American Way but World Trade Center
(2006), while graced with powerful performances and a
life-affirming core narrative, suffers from biased perspectives and
a sluggish middle section.
Tags: 9/11, Andrea Berloff, Dave Karnes, film, iraq, JFK (1991), John McLoughlin, Michael Peña, Michael Shannon, Nicholas Cage, Oliver Stone, police, Salvador (1986), United 93 (2006), Will Jimen, World Trade Center (2006)
Posted in US, character study, suspense, thriller | No Comments »
Rocky Balboa (2006)
Written by James on July 10, 2008 – 10:53 pm -Thirty-two years have now passed since Rocky first went the distance with Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) in 1976. Rocky, the story of Sylvester Stallone’s likeable no-hoper, written by Stallone and directed by John G. Avildsen, took the Best Picture Oscar and thus was a legend, and of course a franchise, born.
Tags: Adrian, Apollo Creed, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, John G.Avildsen, Paulie, Rocky Balboa (2006), Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire
Posted in US, sport | No Comments »
So many things, I’m hard-pushed for a witty title…
Written by Colin on July 8, 2008 – 2:42 pm -
Today’s news starts with something
I found quite surprising. In
this Associated Press piece on backstage.com, the late Heath
Ledger’s performance as The Joker in the upcoming The Dark
Knight (2008) is compared (favourably) to one Mr J Nicholson’s
turn in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975). They even
go so far as to suggest he may even be nominated posthumously for
an Oscar for his efforts. Regular readers will know what a huge fan
of the new Batman I am - but I can’t help but wonder if it’s going
to be that good a performance. True, he was shaping up to be a very
fine actor indeed and his death was a loss to cinema - but a
comic-book creation? I think that’d be a first (unless of course
you, the reader, know different).
Tags: batman, Benthic, Cyberdyne, film, Geek Ad Wednesday, heath ledger, horror, InGen, joker, legal torrents, movie, news, Nicholson, Oscars, The Dark Knight
Posted in film fun, news | No Comments »
Hannibal Rising (2007)
Written by James on July 4, 2008 – 8:59 am -‘I’m evil,’ said Lecter. ‘You can’t reduce me to mere behavioural abnormality.’
Tags: Aaron Thomas, Anthony Hopkins, Brian Cox, Chianti, Clarice Starling, Gaspard Ulliel, Goran Kostic, Hannibal Lecter, Hannibal Rising (2007), Helena Lia Tachovska, Ivan Marevich, Jonathan Demme, Kevin McKidd, Manhunter, Michael Mann, Peter Webber, Rhys Ifans, Richard Brake, Stephen Walters, The Silence of the Lambs
Posted in horror, thriller | No Comments »
The Last King of Scotland (2006)
Written by James on July 3, 2008 – 9:28 am -
Monster performance
How can the inhuman be humanized? It’s a difficult line to tread -
a very successful attempt of recent times came with Oliver
Hirschbiegel’s marvellous Der Untergang (2004), which
chronicled the last, pathetic days of one Adolf Hitler (Bruno
Ganz).
Tags: Adolf Hitler, Bruno Ganz, Der Untergang, Forest Whittaker, Giles Foden, Idi Amin, James McAvoy, Kevin Macdonald, The Last King of Scotland (2006)
Posted in US, history | No Comments »
Clips ahoy!
Written by Colin on July 2, 2008 – 10:47 am -
Today’s news roundup brings you clips for your viewing pleasure. I
say ‘clips’ because one of the many things I hate about the
internet is the ‘teaser trailer’. What dick ever thought that one
up? In fact, if I’d bothered to sit down and stitch together all
the Dark Knight ‘teasers’ I’d seen, I’d have seen pretty
much the whole movie by now. Hardly a tease when you can see it
all, I say. Complaining over (for now). Being on the subject of
The Dark Knight does segue quite neatly into the fact that
yours truly will be at the press screening next week, so check back
for a blow-by-blow report on Wednesday (9 July 2008). I don’t
really need to point you to yet another clip from the film, as I
guess that if you haven’t already seen one, you a) don’t like The
Batman or b) don’t have a computer.
Tags: Gonzo: The Life and Works of Dr Hunter S Thompson, Quantum of Solace, The Batman, The Dark Knight
Posted in film fun, news, trailer | No Comments »
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Written by James on June 30, 2008 – 8:48 am -
Angst Lee
There’s always one, isn’t there? Well, this ever-so ‘umble critic
is putting his reputation on the line - Brokeback Mountain
really isn’t quite as good as everyone else seems to believe.
There, I’ve said it. Accusations of hard-heartedness may follow,
but that doesn’t change the fact that Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon (2000) director Ang Lee’s simplistic, overindulgent
work is little more than a competently made ode to nature and
male-bonding.
Tags: Ang Lee, Anne Hathaway Michelle Williams, Brokeback Mountain, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, heath ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal
Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
Intacto (2001)
Written by Colin on June 27, 2008 – 11:49 am -Having recently watched and enjoyed 28 Weeks Later (2007) - which far outstripped 28 Days Later (2002) in my humble opinion - I got to wondering just why I like the sequel better than the original. I realized pretty soon that it was the mood of the film, alongside some pretty tight camera work. Looking at the credits, I saw the director was one Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, someone I have to admit I’d never heard of. This is not surprising as he’s only made something like four movies. I can’t vouch for the other two, but from what I’ve seen he certainly deserves a lot more work.
Tags: 28 Days Later, 28 Weeks Later, Antonio Dechent, current movie review, Eusebio Poncela, film, Intacto (2001), Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, Leonardo Sbaraglia, Mónica López, movie, nature, NOBODY
Posted in Spanish, psychological thriller, suspense, thriller | No Comments »
Maid, remade and mad
Written by Colin on June 25, 2008 – 9:04 am -News reaches me that Sienna Miller is to star as Maid Marian in the upcoming re-jig of the Robin Hood story. Huh? A Robin Hood remake, surely not? Speaking to the BBC she gushed: “It’s happening. I just found out. It’s the most exciting news in the world.” She has obviously never won a Nobel Peace Prize. The new thing (also alleged to be starring Russell Crowe) will have the angle of sympathy for the Sheriff of Nottingham, facing a not-so-kind Hood. Well, I suppose they had to make it different somehow…
Tags: Adam West, batman, David Hare, Death Race 2000, Escape From New York, Mad, Maid Marion, remake, Robin Hood, Russell Crowe, Sheriff of Nottingham, Sienna Miller, trailer, Uma Thurman
Posted in Uncategorized, film fun, news | No Comments »
Extras! Extras!
Written by Colin on June 24, 2008 – 2:04 pm -
Do you remember those halcyon days of the ‘video
cassette’? You know, when you used to get a big, bulky package
containing, well, a video cassette and, sometimes, if you were
really lucky, a card inviting the studio to spam you unto death by
snail mail?
Tags: biographies, bloopers, cast photos, deleted scenes, documentary, DVDs, extras
Posted in film fun | No Comments »



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