Kick Ass is definitely one of my most favourite films ever, it has more than normal comedy, it has action and comedy... and more, which mix in well in a good film, I reccomend this to anyone who is a fan of super hero movies... there are twists, and what this lad (kick ass) calls real life, I can't wait until Kick Ass 2, twice the fun, it can't get any better than this.
Thankyou
What a series! If you haven't seen it I suggest you make the purchase and prepare to be entertained. Two ordinary old men doing everyday things with their ordinary old mates but they'll have you laughing all the way along. Set in Craiglang, a typical scottish setting they go about their daily lives visiting Naveed at his corner shop or popping down to the local for a pint. Many important topics are covered in this set such as the 'cauld' and people becoming 'deed'. A must see collection!
Jack and Victor are absolute class!
I read Montague Rhodes James' original story after seeing the movie on TV. There have been [at least] 2 TV plays based on the same tale - neither did the original justice. Some of the stills, in colour, of the monster are pretty scary.but the genre, in 1957, didn't merit Technicolor. Pity they couldn't remake it today, with all our digital technology.
The atmosphere generated by master director, Jacques Tourneur is brilliant. From the subconscious invasion of creepy footsteps to the invisibly-planted smoking hoofprints that pursue hero, American psychologist John Holden; the first appearance of that hideous monster face to its shredding of its summoner, evil Julian Karswell - scary. The bit where the starry flecks come together, before the smoke announces the demon's appearance - that gave me nightmares for weeks. The music was perfectly in harmony with the action. The romantic side was played down: glamorous Peggy Cummins was the attached sleuth, but also the endangered heroine. M R James wasn't romantically inclined, though admitted occasional love-interest, and probably would have liked the movie. The last scene, with railway workers and Fuzz scratching their heads over the fuming ruins of Karswell's corpse, probably would have pleased him.
"Night of the Demon" - as seen on TV since about 1967: B&W
Atmospheric dark fantasy from the pen of conan creator robert e howard starring james purefoy as the titular hero solomon kane with stirling support from a roster of british character actors including mckenzie cook, alice krige, and pete postlethwaite. Well chosen exterior locations and a strong visual flair enhance this fast moving tale with some memorable effects laiden set pieces as our hero fights the forces of witchcraft and demonic evil whilst trying to exorcise some personal demons of his own.........
One of the most underrated movies of the last decade, 'Pushing Tin' (colloquial sobriquet for air traffic control), despite an all star cast and an engaging script, didn't win over critics or audiences in 1999. The fact that 1999 was one of the busiest and most exciting years in film (e.g. 'The Matrix', 'Episode 1', 'Fight Club', 'The Sixth Sense', 'American Beauty', 'Notting Hill', 'The World Is Not Enough' etc) may've had something to do with its poor showing at the box office.
Still, there's a lot to be said about this well written, reasonably well paced, and often hilarious, story about polar opposite air traffic controllers: John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton, whose increasingly absurd rivalry forces them to take stock of their lives.
Cusack's on good form as the fast talking maverick, Thornton plays it straight with a languid Southern drawl and quick draw reflexes, Cate Blanchet is commendably understated as Cusack's put upon wife whilst the then real-life Mrs. Thornton; Angelina Jolie, sparkles in pseudo-Goth mode as Billy Bob's better half. John Cusack hits all the right notes with great comic timing and delivery; his rambling speech with random references to a Hibiscus plant is priceless but it's Angelina Jolie who steals almost every scene she's in.
Directed by Mike Newell ('Donnie Brasco') 'Pushing Tin' is a film I enjoy revisiting every now and then: A light and enjoyable comedy, let down slightly by a meandering third act and some dodgy CGI. Give 'Pushing Tin' permission to land in your DVD collection.
First in a great line of series about a serial killer, who has been given a code by his adopted father, so that he only kills "guity people". Characters are well developed and very interesting how Dexter explores his humanity, while not getting caught. Dexter does not feel emotions like the rest of us but he has to pretend to to fit in. It is a very clever series, which is very gripping and leaves you wanting to know more.
You can't judge a film by its title. And you mustn't in the case of The Karate Kid, what with it being set in China and featuring Jackie Chan. It's just a slightly offensive marketing ploy to live off the back of the 1984 hit, which makes you question the motives of making it at all and dismiss it out of hand. They really should have proudly named it "The King-Fu Kid", because despite being a near step-for-step remake, it's actually great fun and deserves a chance to stand on its own.
It's a story about Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) who moves with his mother (a fiery Taraji P. Henson) from Detroit to Bejing. Struggling to fit in, he tries and fails to stand up to a crowd of bullies led by Zhenwei Wang. He becomes afraid of even going to school until meeting Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), the quiet maintenance man who knows Kung-Fu and who reluctantly agrees to teach Dre. A local, ruthless Kung-Fu teacher has agreed his students will leave Dre alone, so long as he fights in an upcoming tournament.
While it's easy to get decent lead roles when your dad is one of the most popular actors in the world and the producer, Will Smith's son Jaden does pretty well in the title role. He has clearly put a lot of work in that demands respect, plus he has inherited his father Will's cheeky humour and timing. Importantly, all the young characters act very well with the adults. Often this kind of film underwrites the grown-ups and the relationship between Dre and Mr. Han especially is very real.
As Mr. Han, Jackie Chan is just magic in what might be his best English speaking role. Through no fault of his own, he doesn't have Pat Morita's natural unassuming calm that made Mr. Miyagi so iconic, but he is just as poignant and brings a beautifully judged humour to the awkward character. The moment he rescues Dre by disabling six bullies without throwing a punch is wonderful. It's brilliantly choreographed, thrilling and very funny in that Chaplin-esque way Chan is so good at. From that point on, he keeps the film alive and proves why he's one of the biggest movie stars around.
The film doesn't flow as nicely as the original, and that could be an effect of over-familiarity, but this version does lack some potential by using a much younger cast, despite their ability. While Zhenwei Wang brings a convincingly vicious ferocity to the role of the main bully, Wen Wen Han as Mei Ying (the girl Dre has a crush on) is awkward and the story loses momentum in those sequences. They are just too young to convince for a romantic angle. The original plot worked as a coming of age story that teenagers could identify with, but I don't see how that is possible this time. Still, it's a lot of wholesome fun and doesn't pull punches. As with the 1984 film, the last half is predictable, but that's the curse of sports based tournament movies and you'll nevertheless be on the edge of your seat!
You might be cynical about why it was made and how it was marketed, but give it a chance, because it's honest and likeable, and could become a cheesy classic like its popular predecessor. This is a children's film that respects its audience, including the adults, and outside of Pixar animation, that is rare and very reassuring. A grown-up movie for kids.
Vincenzo Natali is the Canadian born writer/director The Cube (1997) which was a low budget (about quarter million Canadian dollars) film about a group of people trapped in a cube. It was an excellent film. Natali went onto make Cypher for around $7M and then was obviously given the chance at a much larger budget ($30M) with Splice.
Splice is an inventive, horror-sci-fi-thriller, with a few recognisable actors in Brody and Polley (as genetic scientists Clive Nicoli and Elsa Kast) and it's clear that there was plenty of money spent on the creature effects which are very good. Delphine Chanéac is excellent as Dren, although Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley's roles really could have been filled by anyone and money was certainly wasted on employing them as 'big name' actors. It'd have been better as a film starring lesser well known actors.
An interesting talking point that came up from this film for me was that intelligent people (as far as this film is concerned) certainly don't make better parents that less intelligent people, Clive and Elsa are bloody terrible! Clive unsurprisingly ends up having sex with Dren while Elsa (although clearly damaged by her own childhood) is a terrible, aggressive mother.
I was really hopeful for this film. I was expecting a cleverly written and strongly acted movie. The writing is good although flawed in places and the direction is fairly solid but Brody and Polley are just average. I thought that Polley was very good in some of her other films and although I think Brody is seriously odd and thus makes some very weird acting and performance choices I still think that he may have some talent buried somewhere, but it's not on show here.
Splice was really not what I was hoping for, it just falls a bit flat at times, and the first half drags a little, before things get more exciting towards the end, but I still think it was an interesting film and it's not put me off watching anything else by Natali in the future who I believe is a very talented writer/director.
bones season 5 is up to it's usual standards. brennans grasp on human behaviour is still amusing, lets hope she never changes! the only question is when will she and booth get together?
The re-imagining of this all-American action adventure TV series from the 80s, about soldiers of fortune on the run from the military for crimes they didn't commit, got a warm welcome on the big-screen with box-office takings of around $176M. Will it get the same reception on Blu-ray and DVD? Well the quality of the Blu-ray transfer is excellent boasting bright, clean, colourful and sharp images that virtually leap of the screen. The extras are impressive too with a decent commentary featuring cast and crew as well as deleted scenes, some very funny outtakes (including the Orange Wednesday spoofs) and plenty of 'making of' footage. The Blu-ray pack also includes both DVD and digital versions of the film as well, so this is a decent value-for-money combi-pack offering.
Created by writers and producers Frank Lupo and Stephen J. Cannell, The A Team is one of the best known and best loved TV series of the 80s. There were five seasons in all that ran between 1983 and 1986 and a total of 98 episodes. The character of B.A. Baracus is still quoted today on school playgrounds (and in offices everywhere) but it was in the UK that the show really found its core audience. In fact it was not as popular as expected in the US. With its distinctive theme tune, its weekly montages of B.A. fashioning some sort of armoured vehicle out of an old car and scrap parts, as well as its well-worn catchphrases - from Hannibal's "I love it when a plan comes together" to B.A.'s "I pity the fool" and "I ain't getting on no plane, sucker!", The A Team was always going to find a loving audience.
This latest update is a cutely-scripted, respectful homage to the TV show and despite a few small changes - yes, unlike in the TV show people do get killed (times have changed, contemporary audiences simply wouldn't buy the sort of madcap gun battles that featured in the original show) - it still feels very much like The A Team. It's also, for the most part, well directed and well paced, despite a slightly longer than average running time the film will hold audience attention from start to finish. As for the increased level of violence, yes there is a lot more, but it remains fairly sanitised, albeit is severely pumped up and soaked in adrenaline. And if the action scenes do get a bit daft (which they do, towards the end) then I still believe that it remains true to the spirit of the original show. It's just the sort of hyper-kinetic action that audiences seem to want these days.
The central cast of Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Quinton Jackson and Sharlto Copley all do an admirable job of bringing their characters to life and making them their own inventions whilst also deferentially tipping their hats to the original actors that played the roles in the TV series - two of whom - Dirk Benedict and Dwight Schultz have a brief cameo at the end of the credits.
So, if you have a Friday evening to fill, if no one else can help, and if you can find a Blockbuster store, maybe you can hire The A-Team.
Sometimes it's worth slowing down a little and settling into a legal drama, but the problem can be in finding a good one in a genre swamped with rather lazy John Grisham adaptations. The Verdict is one of the very best, directed by Sidney Lumet who gave us the definitive 12 Angry Men.
Frank Galvin (Paul Newman) is an alcoholic 'ambulance chaser' lawyer, preying on the recently bereaved. His long suffering friend, Mickey, played by dependable Jack Warden, has lined Frank up with an easy case that could pay enough for him to pull himself together. A young girl has been left in a coma by doctors at a renowned Catholic hospital who are willing to settle. All he has to do is take the cheque. Or he could fight for justice and his own redemption (doing the right thing is a favoured theme of Lumet's, such as in Serpico). Something clicks when Frank sees the comatose girl in a beautiful moment while he takes Polaroids for evidence, which linger on the screen.
What might Paul Newman's best role be? There are many great ones, but this could be it. In fact, I think this is one of the great film performances of all time; he invests Frank with such weight and he wins you over immediately, even at the start when he is at his most worthless. Every ounce of his being goes into the character and it's the tiniest things you remember. The subtle weariness, the breaking voice, but always those famous eyes give you a glimpse of what's left of his spirit. The moment when he refuses the hospitals money is quietly powerful with his lonely, awkward dignity. But it is a layered performance, not without humour, which usually comes to the fore in the banter with the lazy yet charming Judge (Milo O'Shea). The scene where they lock horns over an Objection is an absolute delight.
The judge may be biased, but no courtroom battle is complete without the real villain though: James Mason as an all-powerful, any means necessary defence lawyer. If you're familiar with the genre and with James Mason, you may have already assumed what he's like. I bet you're wrong! Mason plays him as a cross between an old grandfather and kindly head teacher, who treats his team like family. But what a delivery! You don't doubt for a single second just how ruthless he can be.
There is a slight weak spot in the film with Charlotte Rampling as Laura, a beautiful mature woman who captures Frank's imagination. Rampling is excellent and there are a couple of stand-out scenes, but ultimately, I found her character superfluous. Still she adds a haunting note at the end, so I can't imagine the story without her.
Lumet's steady direction is married with gorgeous lighting in a natural Autumnal palette, and strikingly realistic. Johnny Mandel's score is fascinating as it is frequently at odds with what is on-screen, occasionally dipping into a horror styling. Just listen when Frank visits and she refuses to be sympathetic, leading to him having a mini panic attack in the bathroom (Newman will break you in that moment if he hasn't already); the music is low and sinister, reminding me of Herrman's Taxi Driver. Actually, considering the story is about redemption and starts with Frank having almost no humanity left, you might think of this as a Taxi Driver for lawyers. It isn't as abrasive though and you'll be willing Frank to stay the course. It is absolutely his story and very satisfying.
There is a strong sense of faith and religion running through the story, from a typically sharp, yet less showy screenplay by David Mamet. It's not obvious (except that he is taking on a Catholic hospital) and instead simmers with quiet resolve to the expected summation, where Frank is clearly speaking of himself as much as the case. Such scenes are clichés, but certain genres need them and it is a fantastic piece of writing, acting and direction as Frank delivers his plea and the films coda, that everyone has a responsibility to justice.
I may have made it sound heavy, but trust in both Mamet's and Newman's unmistakeable style that makes it very watchable. Between their smooth wit and Lumet's old fashioned skill, the film has an infectious rhythm that makes it flow. The Verdict is a marvellous gem that you won't regret seeking out.
'Bad Lieutenant: Port of New Orleans' is in simple terms a Film Noir neatly reversed. Instead of a detective trying to keep a sense of right and wrong in a world of deceit, and eventually sacrificing something of himself, Nicholas Cage plays one who instead thrives on the edge, brazenly taking advantage of all the temptations his position offers without remorse. Even without bitterness. In fact, the drug fuelled Detective Terence McDonagh is possibly one of the most amoral lead characters ever portrayed in film, yet he is oddly likeable. He has no arc to speak of, he simply exists. Think of Travis Bickle, high on drugs, wearing a badge and with the luck of the devil. You're halfway there! He is the fascinating centre-piece of Werner Herzog's wonderful and brilliant vision.
It reminds me of another Nicholas Cage film, Martin Scorcese's 'Bringing Out The Dead'. While that film is underrated, 'Bad Lieutenant: Port of New Orleans' is better realised, even at its most audacious and downright odd. There are some incredible moments to make your jaw drop, from Cage losing patience in a chemist or threatening grannies, to shots from the point of view of imaginary iguanas or recently bereaved alligators. Yes, you read that right! There might be brief contributions from confused reptiles, but Werner Herzog directs with such ease that it never feels weird. The real locations add another level of depth too; it opens during Hurricane Katrina and picks up again six months later, with Cage's McDonaugh mirroring the crazy environment.
Nicholas Cage seems so tailored for the role it's predictable to even mention! But he does give a brilliant performance that demands attention without suffocating the story and lets us even sympathise with him. Following his recent work in 'Kick Ass', he is well and truly back on top. The supporting cast, including Eva Mendes and Val Kilmer, are given space despite McDonagh being such a compelling lead, and they easily bring personality to their characters in his shadow. There is no finer testament to Cage's work in this role than the very final shot, which he shares with the most minor of characters. It ties up the story so perfectly and should leave you with a huge grin. Possibly while you shake your head in disbelief!
Perhaps the key to being able to sympathise so readily with McDonaugh, is when you realise you are watching a comedy. Not a laugh out loud slapstick affair, of course, but a thriller with a delicate touch of irony, amused by the sheer audacity of what is unfolding. And unlike the Coen Brothers, whose "idiot" films tend to mock their characters and poke them to see how they react, Herzog offers no judgment on them. Their world is at once perverted and twisted and yet is absolutely convincing. What is particularly brilliant is that this is not a violent film. It's shocking, disturbing and twisted, but never gratuitous and always with a wink to the audience. It's a unique tone and testament to the director's steady hand.
Comparisons with the Abel Ferrara's 'Bad Lieutenant' are inevitable, but absolutely pointless. This is a very different film with a different agenda and shouldn't be remotely thought of as a remake. Instead consider it essential because modern cinema was screaming out for this film. It's artistic, it's entertaining, it's maddening, it's utter brilliance from the opening shot. Thank goodness for Werner Herzog. There are interviews with him and Nicholas Cage on the Blu-Ray and any film fan should find their calm and perceptive view very reassuring. This film could not be any more important or relevant right now. Don't miss out!
'Saw': Macabre masterpiece full of nasty little surprises. Audiences were intrigued and captivated by this bombastic blend of psychological terror, fiendishly clever contraptions and an unnerving nosedive into the murky world of ecstatic mysticism by proxy (i.e. flageation or severe punishments used to induce an altered state of mind). Two men wake up in a room ankle-chained to one another, a body lies motionless on the floor, a reformed drug addict recounts her life-or-death encounter with the Jigsaw serial killer; the man who holds the key (often literally) to unlocking this sinister mystery.
Danny Glover deserves a lot of credit for making his character one of the most memorable of the franchise whilst Cary Elwes plays a man who's made to face himself with gob smacking results. 'Saw' is the first and finest of the long, and long ago tedious, franchise. 'Saw' gets straight to the point with a slick morality tale full of blood, guts, gore n' gusto: A landmark horror.
'Saw II' inventively inverts the original's sprawling narrative by confining all the main characters in one room: Detectives Donnie Whalberg and Dina Meyer are on the scene to try and stop madman Jigsaw from doing what he does best. Tobin Bell continues to creep us all out and brings an air of subtly to the now iconic character. Brutal, tense and claustrophobic: Good sequel.
'Saw III' a.k.a. 'The One Before It All Got A Bit Silly'. Jigsaw has health problems, Cancer to be precise, and he can't very well book himself into a hospital what with being a wanted serial killer and all. So he does what any self-respecting lunatic on the run might; he gets his first victim-turned-ally; Amanda (Shawnee Smith) to take a doctor hostage and perform a little brain surgery. The real star of this movie is Bahar Somekh, who plays Dr. Lynn. Somekh is a brilliant, hugely underrated, actress and I've been saying that since performance in 'Crash' (2005). Violence, torture, blood and guts by the gallon swirl around a fairly competent, albeit convoluted, narrative structure that threatens to go on and go and on...which it did, much to its own detriment. Saw III offer top drawer thrills and chills and should be seen by all.
'Saw IV': Not bad, all things considered. Jigsaw, despite the terminal turn of events in 'Saw III', still manages to find ingenious, characteristically depraved, ways to torment the world. Costas Mandylor and Athena Karkanis are on the case but it all starts to get a bit much. The film valiantly tries to keep Jigsaw in the mix and often succeeds, but there's no escaping the fact that this is franchise filmmaking at its most mediocre. Some good traps and a reasonable pace makes this just about watchable.
'Saw V': Saw goes from Wootz Steel razor to blunted butter knife, as the now somewhat pointless series, elbow crawls beneath the string net of studio greed towards the flagpole of guaranteed profits. Julie Benz crops up in a supporting role whilst the story moves forward with new its protagonists who work well within the constraints of a script and story that struggles to keep things interesting. Good, not great.
'Saw VI': Quite entertaining in its own right but well past its sell by date, the film is essentially a standalone TV show with tenuous links to the original characters. 'Saw VI' opens with a pair of moneylenders getting their comeuppance and attempts to show the Jigsaw syndrome as a state of mind or rather than being limited to one person. I suppose I ought to give the makers some credit for at least linking it in as part of the larger narrative: Mildly engaging horror, but a far cry from the original.
And just when you tought it was all over, along comes 'Saw VII' aka 'Saw 3D' (not in this set, you'll have to wait for another box set to get that and, no doubt, an ultimate edition of that set as well)...and I'm guessing they'll be a couple more sequels a few years down the line or, God help us, a re-imagined reboot of the first one!
The makers of 'Saw' don't seem to care about the law of diminishing returns and have, to their credit, meticulously constructed a franchise chamber as convoluted and often as painful as Jigsaw's torture devices. And yet there's no denying that 'Saw' was a game-changer; and even spawned a somewhat troubling sub-genre dubbed 'Torture Porn'. Many other directors stepped up to the plate with Eli Roth unsurprisingly scraping the bottom of the barrel with his 'Hostel' movies whilst even award winning auteur Roland Joffe got in on the act with 'Captivity'. But for all the imitators, 'Saw' stands alone as a cinematic mind f*** par excellence: In the '80s it was 'Elm Street', in the '90s it was 'Seven' and in the '00s it is 'Saw'.
Fantastic season and this programme just keeps getting better and better. Tony Dinozzo makes NCIS and again it is just fantastic.
This has to be the best ever Mafia drama. It shows all aspects of their lives, not just the violence and criminality. The everyday problems that people have from troublesome teenagers, to caring for older relatives are all there, even for the boss of a Mafia family. This is not for the fainthearted, as there are graphic scenes, and colourful language, although it is offset by the dark comedy element. If you like realism, then this is a must see series for you.
Interesting post-Apocalyptic action-drama, which sees Denzel Washington as Eli: A quiet loner who's been walking the Earth for almost thirty years; entrusted to protect and deliver a book required to rebuild civilization.
The Hughes Brothers ('From Hell') make a confident return to film after a nine year hiatus and opt for skip bleached, multi filtered mis-en-scene: As our badass hero walks into a Southwest town run by a power mad Gary Oldman, relieves gun totting bikers of their heads with a Saracen sword, reluctantly takes on a sidekick in the shapely form of Mila Kunis and steels himself to complete the mission.
'The Book of Eli' often plays out like a best of the Post Apocalypse, Western, Sci-fi and Samurai genres: The dustbowl landscapes of 'Mad Max', the wooden house siege of 'Young Guns', the saturated vistas of 'Pitch Black' and the wandering Ronin of countless Kurosawa movies.
Denzel Washington is awesome as always, and balances out the narrative to make Eli's spiritual momentum as engaging an aspect of the narrative as the journey itself. Enjoyable movie; worth watching.
Modern family is without a doubt the best sitcom to arrive on TV and now DVD for years. Where Arrested Development left us pining for more Modern Family takes over with suitable form and laughter. The Emmy award winning comedy show is set in surburban territory as a fly on the wall docu-comedy puts us in the middle of the hilariously chaotic lives of Phil & Claire Dunphy with their three madcap kids, Jay and Gloria Pritchard, his Columbian wild wife and her son Manny, who steals the show and Jay's son Mitchell and his partner Cameron who after adopting a baby must decide who should be the stay at home dad. Cleverly disguised as a mockumentary we are invited into their homes and them into our hearts as the success Stateside should mean plenty more series for the forseeable future. Phil (Ty Burrell, Out of Practice) & Claire Dunphy (Julie Bowen, Happy Gilmore) are your typical Mom and Pop but with three kids growing up fast they have more to deal with than they think. Haley (Sarah Hyland) is the 15 going on 22 year old teenager who thinks boys are more important than anything with her love for her high school senior Dylan (with hilarious consiquenses when he pens a catchy tune for her and all the family start to hum it!) Alex (Ariel Winter) is the typical Lisa Simpson of the family. Smart, neat and too worried about her Science exams to think about becoming Haley! Finally, there's Luke (Nolan Gould), the youngest of the Dunphy clan and sometimes a literal thinker that's just innocent enough to get away with it. Claire's Dad is Jay Pritchard (Ed O'Neill, Married... with Children), factory owner and married to the Colombian beauty Gloria (Sofia Vergara, Entourage) who has a son called Manny (Rico Rodriguez.) Their age difference is no issue to them, however, on more than one time it's been mentioned that he is as old as her father. Money grabber or true love. There's no doubt with these two it's the latter which makes for great TV. Manny is the little big man of the house and far older and wiser in his years than his actual age. The fencing episode is a classic! Jay's son is Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) a lawyer who lives with his life partner Cameron (Eric Stonestreet, 2010 Emmy Winner for best supporting actor) and their adopted daughter from Vietnam, Lily. Created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan via Fox TV whose writing, producing and creating credits include Wings, Frasier, Just Shoot Me!, Back to You, The Larry Sanders Show and The Wonder Years to name a few success was clearly eveident from episode one once the calendar was marked (you'll get it if you've seen it... and if you haven't then it's must see TV not to be missed.) Modern Family is modern day TV for a modern generation who want their comedy laugh out loud on the sweeter side of life.
Probably the best TV show in the world. This is my first review. Thanks.
This homage to the great 1940s Film Noir masterpieces, references these works in so many deliberate and pointed ways. For example, note the lighting (most Noirs) to the ruined city (Third Man), the airport farewell (Casablanca) and to the Kate Blanchett acting (Greta Garbo) to name but a few. It is a shame that the look and feel of the film was given more attention than the script. Whilst the famous meeting at Potsdam engages Stalin, Churchill and Truman, the former allies and some individuals are depicted on the "make" trying to locate and retrieve the designers of the Nazi's V2 Rocket programme. Whilst the film starts at a good pace with interesting characters and motives as it unwinds the simplicity that made those 1940s war Noirs so great is lost in overcomplicated details and narratives. Nevertheless its worth seeing if you are a Noir fan.
A journalist returns to recently liberated Berlin in 1945 to find his former girlfriend and his new driver involved in a mysterious conspiracy against the back drop of the famous Potsdam meeting.
Like slow burning dynamite that leaves you with the bitter aftertaste of gunpowder and dust, 'The Grifters', whilst not the most pleasant of films, certainly leaves its mark on the viewer. Not surprising when you consider that author Jim Thompson's work includes controversial, hardboiled pulp fiction like 'This World Then the Fireworks' and 'The Killer inside Me'.
Produced by Martin Scorcese and directed by Stephen Frears ('Dangerous Liaisons') the movie follows the vice ridden misadventures of con artists and the scams they pull. Focusing on a mother and son duo played by Angelica Huston and John Cusack (both brilliant as usual) 'The Grifters' throws a golden apple into the fray; with Cusack's older lover and likeminded thief Annette Benning (also on good form). The two women are bought together in a twist of fate after a con-gone-wrong, and it's only a matter of time before an unsavory and potentially lethal triangle begins to take shape. Benning and Huston seethe and scratch like there's no tomorrow whilst Cusack plays that classic noir archetype; the hapless patsy in over his head, to the hilt.
'The Grifters' is well made, well acted and successfully updates the narrative from 1950s to 1990s L.A. A gritty, downbeat but expertly crafted exercise in moral ambiguity, betrayal and cynicism. Uplifting it ain't.
Not as funny as it looks, but nonetheless watchable, time travel comedy; which sees John Cusack and friends transported to the year 1986 via the titular hot tub time machine. Now magically in their late teens, the gang get a chance to do it all again; amend the mistakes of their youth whilst staying on a course that'll ensure Cusack's nephew isn't erased from existence!
Director and frequent Cusack collaborator; Steve Pink (co-wrote 'Grosse Pointe Blank' and adapted 'High Fidelity') gets the tone about right and doesn't miss a beat when it comes to re-creating the '80s on screen. The problem lies in the fact that 'HTTT' wants to be all things to all people: its part poignant buddy movie, part gross out farce and part clever sitcom; the elements for a good movie are all there but the package as a whole fails to deliver.
They're some laughs to be had along the way (e.g. cameos from 'Karate Kid' villain William Zabka and 'Back To The Future's' Crispin Glover), though you can't help but think that Cusack ended up in a role better suited to the likes of Sean William Scott or Ashton Kutcher. And when you're drawing parallels between the aforementioned actors and John Cusack, you know there's something amiss. I might give 'HTTT' another go somewhere down the line, but for now, it's a time capsule better left undiscovered.
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