The Movie Bit

What movies about casinos can teach audiences

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Tue, 30 Nov 2021 09:24:00 +0000

If you have played a few rounds of poker or wondered how to play slots online, you might’ve taken to the internet to read as much as you can. Guides are incredible, and they can help you get a good grasp of how the game works.

But they won’t teach you what type of player you are - to do that; you have to play for real.

Are you the team’s maths wizard and you can work out the probability of almost any gamble? Or are you a careful player? How do you bet, do you consider everything and then win in the end, or slow and steady player?

Or perhaps you’re the scrappy, funny one that gets himself into some terrible hijinks, but all goes right in the end.

Something that is super enjoyable to compare your play style or learn and play style from those characters in some of the most loved casino movies.

No, not all casino movies are true to life, and sometimes you even see them playing poker with a blackjack hand. And vice versa. Yet, casino and casino movies are some of the most popular of all time.

Here are some of the best.

The Gambler (2014) The boy done good isn’t something you will be saying as you watch this, and you probably don’t want to follow in this guy’s footsteps either.

This film contains various ups and down and does not climax like a typical casino film. With Mark Wahlberg at the helm, you can anticipate an exciting, well-acted movie.

However, some people like the original more, but that is just person preference. The original Gambler script is based on James Toback's real-life experiences (who wrote the Bugsy screenplay).

Debt that is crushing, a great deal of emotion, and finally plenty of (bad) schemes to remedy the problems.

Although The Gambler only has a 6.1/10 on IMDb, the movie is well worth watching.

Let’s just say you don’t want to be this guy - but you can learn a lot from this movie anyway – like how not to approach your casino time.

Bugsy It was an basic desert before Las Vegas became synonymous with casino, glamour, and glittering illuminations.

This is a fascinating tale of how a charming and dark gangster named Bugsy Siegel became one of Las Vegas' founding fathers.

Bugsy is a biographical gangster movie that follows the life of a well-known charismatic thug.

This is another piece by James Toback, whose name you may recall from The Gambler.

Bugsy was a crucial figure in the development of modern-day Las Vegas.

The reviews for this movie are incredible - but the likelihood of you becoming a casino mobster in this day and age is pretty slim. So what can you take away from this movie? That ambition and know-how can take you pretty far, but you have to know when to call it quits - and don’t fall in with the wrong crowd.

According to IMDb, this film has a rating of 6.8/10; on Rotten Tomatoes, it has an 85 percent rating - pretty high and worth a watch!

Ocean’s Eleven (2001) When it comes to characters, there are plenty to choose from here. Are you the sly Lionel? How about the slick and talented Saul? Or maybe, you are more like Rusty - incredibly smart, efficient, and great with cards.

An Iconic movie about casinos and intelligence. One of the most audacious crime syndicates in history aims to pull off the "big one" so they'll never have to hustle again.

One of Las Vegas's most opulent casinos, the Bellagio Resort serves as the backdrop, and the cast is equally impressive.

The film has enjoyed a 20-year reign of glory because of the amusing introductions for each character, and how smart the plot is.

If you enjoyed the 1960s movie, you'll enjoy the new one, too.

This one contains romance, excitement, a unique storyline and is easy to follow. Follow up with Ocean's 11 by seeing its sequel, Ocean's 12, and then Ocean's 13. Although the latter films aren’t as good, they are still a fun watch.

On Rotten Tomatoes, Ocean's 11 has an 83% approval rating. IMDb has a 7.7/10 rating.

This movie is an excellent representation of the diverse nature of players.

21
There are several scenes throughout the film that can teach you a lot about Blackjack – and since it is one of the most realistic, it’s worth paying attention. Additionally, the ethics and morals of blackjack tables in Las Vegas are shown in 21.

A compelling film from beginning to end, the movie has been regarded as among the most authentic casino films ever made.

21 is based on the true tale of six MIT students who were educated to be card counting geniuses, making it extra fascinating.

An unconventional math instructor and pupils with heavy school debt and an aptitude for mathematics make compelling watching.

The last scenes of the movie give us twist after twist. We get to watch rise and fall of a ruthless tycoon for 21's easy-to-follow narrative.

With only 66% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 6.8/20 on IMDb, it hasn’t scored too highly, but it is worth watching since it is a true story.

21 is so fascinating because it shows us that part of the reason they were so good is that they for the percentages of winning down to fine art, which means effectively card counting. This isn’t illegal but is frowned upon most of the time - it does become a legal issue when there is software involved, though!

Casino movies can teach us how to play with confidence; what to look for at the tables, and they always cover tells, which can be incredibly beneficial when you sit at the table. But they can also show us that not everyone is a winner and playing smart is the key to having a successful time in casinos.

How related are movie based slot games?

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Mon, 12 Apr 2021 13:47:00 +0000

The rise in popularity of the slot machine

Online gaming has been growing steadily over the last few years, with a marked rise in the number of people enjoying a spin on the slots. Technology has enabled operators to provide engrossing and immersive experiences for the most ardent of casino fans, as well as the absolute novice. The beauty of the slot machine is that it requires no skill to win, and can be played by those wagering mere pennies, all the way through to the high rollers, placing bets of hundreds of pounds.

According to Statista, the market size of the online casino is in excess of US227 billion and is only predicted to rise further. After sports betting, casinos account for the second biggest market, and the majority (almost 70% according to the UK Gambling Commission) of revenue comes from slot games. It is predicted that between 2020 and 2027 the online casino market is due to grow around 11.5%, and slot machines will follow this trend.

As such, there is a great deal of focus on developing new and exciting games to attract players; one of the most popular ways this is being done is through themed games. This means that players will be attracted to something new by having it link to something they already know, whether it is music, a TV show or a movie.

Movie themed slot games

One of the most popular themes is that of movies. Whether old classics, or new blockbusters, the world of online slots has certainly made the most of popular culture to solidify their brand. But how do they do this? And are the games reflective of the films they are based on or is it just a gimmick to attract players? With over 400 slots games, Virgin Games has wholly embraced themed slots as a way of engaging with their player base.

Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express

Originally a book, there have been many movie adaptations of this, with the most recent movie featuring a host of high profile celebrities, including Kenneth Branagh, Johnny Depp, and Judi Dench. Immersing players in the mystery genre, the game features the Hercule Poirot icon which will inspect the symbols and turn one into a Wild, increasing the odds of winning. The Passenger Investigation Free Spin Bonus allows players to open doors and reveal passengers, getting bonuses for any that are revealed. The heavy use of dark, sombre music helps recreate the atmosphere of the film, and places the player at the heart of the investigation.

Beetlejuice

Based on the 1988 Tim Burton cult classic, this game is sure to attract fans of this wacky horror. Having spawned an animated TV series, video games and even a stage musical, it is no surprise that it is a popular slot game. With quirky music and exciting flashing lights, players are transported to the macabre and unusual world of poltergeists and horror. The use of ghost symbols and wilds, and the cascade feature helps players win, and it is done so in a fun and engaging way.

Spartacus

The 1960 epic historical drama by Stanley Kubrick has a legion of fans all around the world, and has attained classic cult status even amongst those who have not seen it. The slot versions of this, and yes, there are many, aim to recreate the grandeur and spectacle of ancient Rome. There is Spartacus Megaways, which uses new technology to randomly change the symbols that appear on each reel, exponentially increasing the number of potential combinations. Spartacus: Call to Arms, Spartacus: Gladiator of Rome, Spartacus: Legendary Warrior, and Spartacus: Super Colossal Reels are also a part of the Spartacus slot family. All offer players free spins in varying degrees, as well as using similar icons featuring traditional Roman features, with players aiming to match amphitheatre symbols.

The Goonies

This game brings the whole gang together to find One-Eyed Willy’s treasure! Based on the cult classic from 1985, players are presented with a treasure map, and are tasked with matching symbols to uncover parts of the map and gain One-Eyed Willy Treasure Bonuses, needing to collect enough of the treasure bonus parts before the counter resets to zero. One of the heroes of the film, Chunk, will create Wild symbols increasing chances of winning, and Mickey, Mouth, and Data all feature heavily to provide additional reels and bonus spins.

So what is the verdict?

Movie themed online slot games are certainly very popular, as evidenced by the sheer number of people that play them, and their prevalence in online casinos. It is a canny move by developers to tap into the popularity of existing popular culture and gain the benefits of a pre-existing fan base and marketing. What is clear is that predominantly, developers focus on cult classics that have stood the test of time, and more adult games, catering to their demographic. There is a rich cross-section of genres, with comedies, horrors, and thrillers all featuring heavily in the slot games available to players. Operators have leveraged technology to create a masterful interpretation of the films; styling the graphics and sounds to immerse the player in the world of the film.

The unusual sports disciplines seen in movies

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Mon, 28 Dec 2020 20:18:00 +0000

The movie industry is known for its ability to create a compelling story out of pretty much anything. The filmmakers are considering the most unusual themes, as long as they have the potential of becoming something of substance and box office potential. As far as the genres go, capturing sporting emotions on a big screen in an inspiring and captivating narrative makes perfect sense.

We have all probably seen our fair share of such movies. Some of them were better than others. One thing is to make a film about something everybody likes but taking up a lesser-known subject could much more challenging. Here are a few examples of unusual sports that made it to the big screen.

Horse racing

It cannot be said that horse racing is not popular. It does bring people to the tracks, all around the world. It is also particularly appealing for someone who likes to make a bet on the action but making a movie about it could be difficult.

Nevertheless, quite a few motion pictures with a horse racing theme were made. Phar Lap from 1983 is considered one of the best. Viewers may also remember Tobey Maguire’s performance in Seabiscuit (2003), based on the novel Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand.

Arm wrestling

Arm wrestling isn’t an incredibly fashionable sport to follow. First organized tournaments started to appear back in the 1950s. There are even world championships being held since the 1970s. It’s hard to imagine making a movie about two guys holding hands, yet it happened.

Granted, there aren’t many, but it is still very likely you have heard about one of them. All because it was made during the pick of the action era and involved Sylvester Stallone himself. The 1987’s Over the Top puts Sly in a position to win back his son while competing at the world championships.

Poker

Although poker might not be the first thing that comes to mind when we think about the sporting thrill, it is very popular. Particularly online, where sessions of virtual poker with friends and strangers are happening all the time. No wonder then that it also works as a movie theme.

The amount of actual playtime can vary in movies. Naturally, films that focus mainly on the game will have the most action. Other productions may just treat the casino vibe as a nice setting for telling a different story. Nevertheless, one of the most appreciated poker movies has to be 1998’s Rounders, starring Matt Damon.

Curling

Although very popular in the cold climate countries and adapted in more exotic locations such as Japan, Brazil, China, or New Zealand, curling doesn’t look like a sport packed with action. It only has been a medal sport since the 1998 Winter Olympics. It almost seems as you cannot make a movie about sliding rocks on the ice. At least not a serious one.

Indeed, the comedy genre feels like a better choice. It was the approach for Man with Brooms (2002), which is a story about four members of a curling team. The funny side does not surprise, considering that one of the characters is portrayed by the famous comedian Leslie Nielsen.

What Can We Learn From Movies Like Uncut Gems?

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Fri, 30 Oct 2020 11:49:00 +0000

Anytime Adam Sandler drama film, I get a little wary.

That said this one was actually really good. And I guess, to be fair, it is more of a dark comedy and crime flick than legitimate drama. Perhaps we should call it a dramedy? That said, it has a 7.4 of 10 IMBd rating and 92% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 91% on Metacritic. So, pretty solid all around.

Uncut Gems stars Adam Sandler, Julia Fox, Kevin Garnett, Idina Menzel, Judd Hirsch, LaKeith Stanfield, and Eric Bogosian. The movie blurb sells the film as: “A charismatic jeweler makes a high-stakes bet that could lead to the windfall of a lifetime. In a precarious high-wire act, he must balance business, family, and adversaries on all sides in pursuit of the ultimate win.’

What can we learn from a film like Uncut Gems?

Don’t Ever Loan Valuable Items

A friend of mine a long time ago gave me a nugget of sage advice. He said, “don’t ever loan money or anything of value to anyone who’s ass you can’t kick.” He went on to say unless it’s something that you don’t really care about. But I think that’s where the keyword ‘valuable’ qualifies his advice.

Howard Ratner would not have gotten into the predicament, bot the up and downside of it all, had he not loaned the priceless black opal. It’s basically the equivalent of a blood diamond, as the film opens with Ethiopian minors who get injured, yet find this amazing black opal … which ends up as the centerpiece of the plot.

I am getting off track with the plot and setup, but the point is neither Howard Ratner nor Adam Sandler could kick Kevin Garnett’s ass. I doubt he’d be able to beat up LaKeith Stanfield … so therein lies the problem. Don’t loan priceless gems to people who have more grit than you.

Don’t Place Bets With Shady Loan Sharks …

… Even if they are long-time family friends or your brother-in-law. Just use a normal, trusted online sportsbook where you actually get attractive signup bonuses and everything. The problem with mini-mob-boss type guys is even if they are your friend, they probably have people around them who most definitely are not your friend; people who are the definition of sociopaths. They might not necessarily be evil, but they could care less whether you live or die. For them, you are either a tool that helps them get what they need or an obstacle in their path.

Sports betting is expanding with legal operations popping up all over the United States. There is no longer a need to make shady back-alley bets; just do it online.

Don’t Rob Peter to Pay Paul

Robbing Peter to pay Paul almost never works out. In this case, it gets even more confounded. Howard is into his brother-in-law, Arno, for 100,000 dollars of debt. He makes a bet that would net him $600,000.00, but unbeknownst to Howard, Arno put a stop to the bet because he made it using cash that should have gone to Arno in the first place. So, his bet ticket was never actually placed, and his winning bet is out the window. Later, Howard gets his father in law to bid on the Opal at an action that Howard had already committed to driving the price up. But Kevin Garnett doesn’t outbid his father-in-law, and now he’s in another Peter-Paul situation with his wife’s dad.

He learns that KG is still willing to buy the black opal, but instead of handing the cash over to Arno and his thugs, he sends Julia (his girlfriend) off to place a three-way player prop parlay on Garnett. He ends up winning, but by this time, Arno’s thugs are so furious at the blatant disregard and inability to follow instructions that they kill Howard in a fit of rage.

Lesson learned. Don’t rob Peter to pay Paul. In fact, just don’t borrow money to pay a debt. And do everything you can to pay your debts instead of skirting them while simultaneously taking on more debt. Whether it’s a credit company, a loan shark, or your mom, you’re going to piss some people off.

Why video game based movies suck

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Thu, 08 Oct 2020 20:24:00 +0000

If anyone would ask you to name some excellent movies that were adapted from video games, you would be in trouble. We don’t know if it’s a curse, or the producers don’t have enough inspirations, but to be honest, almost all of the video games adaptations suck. No matter how more adaptations arrive, no matter how high quality is the CGI, they are not meant for the cinema screen. This, raises the question: why nobody can make a good adaptation? The whole concept is terrible, or they are just trying too much to be people pleasers? We tried to think about this, and this is our 5 points why video game adaptations are bad.

Most video games can’t be adapted.

Let's start with the fact that most of the time, the raw material is not suitable. We don’t intend to offend anyone, but it took a long time for video games to be viewed as an art. They came to a level where they are too deep and complicated to make a quality film from them.

For example, in the Need For Speed movie the movie makers they only used a few elements from the beloved NFS: Most Wanted game. The story itself wasn’t that bad, but it was far from the game. Not to mention the angry bird’s movie. They cut out almost the whole concept of the game. The movie is literally about an angry birds perspective. They took out the part where they have to defeat the green piglets with a giant slingshot and inserted a lot of drama. Why they did that? Because the games weren’t meant to be adapted for movie screens.

The best games remain untapped

And even if the main story is good, the creators seem to not force themselves. For instance Assassin's Creed could have been more successful if they would follow the history of any of the games rather than creating a stand-alone movie.

The other problem is that most of the time they recreate action games, where the main point is that you can be the superhero. The most promising games, that has a bit of drama, and a good story like Mass Effect, Bioshock, The Last of Us are the ones that haven’t turned into movies.

The protagonists and the conflicts are lame

Unlike the first problem, where the story was changed entirely, it can be a problem even if you stick too much to the story. For example, in the script of Halo from Alex Garland’s, you can see that in vain, he follows the story of the first part almost word for word. He even wrote in the script that “it’s just like the last track”. But somehow the approach simply doesn’t work as a movie experience. The mythology of the game, the moods, characters, tasks are all on point, but all his efforts are worthless because he can't do anything with the two fundamental features of video games: The character and the conflicts.

First of all, the protagonist of most video games is a nobody. He starts from the bottom, he’s just a skeleton we control, and gain experience and other objectives with it. And it’s the effort, the path that we have to go through is the thing we like. Also, the drama is also created by us, and our choices, like in Detroit, become human, so somehow the game is personalised for us. Something that not a single movie can return.

Another thing that can’t work in the movies is the scheme of the game. In a video game is something normal that we have to face enemies over and over, and in the meantime, we do tasks to evolve. But in a movie, it can be boring to watch the same scheme over and over for two hours knowing what will be the outcome.

High expectations

If you only play online games like blackjack or Tetris you may like the adaptations, because you don’t have anything to compare the movie to. But if someone is a real gamer who played several story games, you have a pretty high expectation from the movie. You seek the same level of excitement, curiosity and action that you felt in the game. But since you can’t control the protagonist it like watching gameplay on YouTube. That’s why when we see that our favourite game has a movie adaptation we expect the same feelings, and we have a pretty high expectation. But the demands are never met.

Publishers always have the final word

One perfect example of this is the Halo movie. The producer always had to do what Microsoft asked of him. The company not only got involved in the screenplay but also wanted to determine the directors and the actor crew. And I already forgot… they also asked a lot of money for the rights.

In this cases, the right owning companies like Microsoft and Ubisoft (in the case of Assasins Creed) acts as if he was doing the studios a favour, but their only target is to promote their own games. On the other hand, a game development company is hard to know anything about the “hows” and “whys” of filmmaking. They only want to create a strong brand from themselves.

Conclusion

First of all, I have to declare that not all of the adaptations are bad. For example, the Witcher was a big success, and the second season is much waited by a lot of fans. So it’s hard to create a good adaptation, but it’s not impossible. I believe the key is to only think about the movie itself as a single product, not an extension for the game. I believe that’s why the Batman games and movies are so great. They took the DCEU universe, and both the movie and the gaming industry created their own product, with the specific story but with the same characters.

Will, there be any other good adaptations? We don’t know that. But let’s hope that the studios have learnt from the mistakes in the past and the movies in the future will be better.

Top 3 soap operas that ever aired

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Fri, 04 Sep 2020 09:56:00 +0000

The best soap operas of all time

If you were born over the past few decades, you probably never grew into much of a fan of any soap opera. This is probably because it would be pretty hard for you to catch up on the previous 30 or 50 seasons of a show that has been running since the 70s or early 90s, which is often the case with soap operas.
However, these popular TV shows have shaped up generations of the past and still remain a big part of older generations’ lives. While the genre is slowly dying away, there are still quite a few soap operas that run on a daily basis. For those who haven’t had a chance to see them, we take a look at the top 3 TV soap operas that ever ran and give you a glimpse into what it is that made them so great.

1. Days of our Lives

Initially aired in 1965, Days of our Lives or DOOL is an iconic American soap opera that airs on NBC. The show is still ongoing in 2020, with well over 13,000 episodes already in the books. The show has been running for 55 years and still counting, with the partnership between Sony Pictures Television and Corday Productions giving birth to one of the longest standing TV programs of all times.

The show mixes two of the most popular soap opera themes, the one of daily lives of regular families with the one of the lives of doctors and hospital staff. By focusing on a family of doctors living in Salem, Days of our Lives was able to capture the hearts of millions of Americans with its intriguing stories of love, family and medical dramas unfolding throughout the seasons.

2. Guiding Light

Created by Irna Philips, Guiding Light was originally a radio drama that started airing in 1937. In 1952, the show made its debut on CBS and over the years became one of the longest airing TV programs of any kind. This soap opera aired all the way into 2009 when it was finally cancelled, but not before booking 15,762 episodes on the air.

The 57 season TV show currently holds the Guinness World Record as the longest running drama in American TV history and holds a special place in TV history. The show originally followed a German family of immigrants who came to the USA with just dollars in their pockets and their daily struggles. While the storyline expanded greatly since then, the show remained focused on daily lives of its characters like most soap operas, and was a great hit for much of its airing time.

3. General Hospital

Ranking second in the Guinness Book of World Records only behind Guiding Light in terms of airing time, General Hospital is an American soap opera that has been running since 1963 and is still in production.The show first premiered on ABC nearly 60 years ago and has been running without major breaks ever since.

The show focuses on a general hospital in an American city by the name of Port Charles and its staff, along with all the intrigues one could imagine in such a place. From major medical cases to love relationships and animosities, the show depicts daily lives of people doing their jobs and doing their best to make it in a competitive and demanding medicinal profession.

Even more record-breaking soap operas

The TV shows we mentioned in the text are only a few of the most interesting record breakers. However, there are plenty of others on the list as well and we recommend checking out the infographic below to find out just what you may have missed over the decade. We have prepared an incredibly deep insight into the ins and outs of soap operas, so enjoy the trip down memory lane with us:

(source: slots.info)

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: 20 Years Later

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Wed, 29 Jul 2020 12:08:00 +0000

When Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas debuted in May of 1998, the film flopped. Not many went to see it in theatres while others came away confused and uncomfortable.

Critics didn’t know what to do with the fanciful, bright world that Terry Gilliam created to reproduce the great novel by Hunter S. Thompson. Some admitted that the film was a valiant effort, but ultimately a failure. Others enjoyed the aesthetic of it, but couldn’t glean enough from the narrative because of the free-wheeling dialogue and the quirky visual journey.

Rhino Films and Summit Entertainment lost around $5 million because of the film’s poor performance at the box office. Benicio del Toro, who played Dr. Gonzo, had gained fifty pounds only to be condemned with a lackluster performance by critics.

Meanwhile, cameos by the likes of Christopher Meloni, Tobey Maguire, Cameron Diaz, and even Hunter S. Thompson himself didn’t help. However, the film had a staying power due to its cult classic status.

What it lacked in box office glory, it made up for with at-home entertainment sales. Since its release on VHS and DVD in 2001, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas has become a staple amongst other American classics like The Princess Bride, Clerks, and Fight Club.

For those who may not know, the film is based closely on the semi-autobiographical book by the enigmatic and controversial journalist, Hunter S. Thompson. The narrative focuses on a 1970s dream trip from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, with plenty of mishaps in-between.

Today, this trip may not have happened given the availability of free bets and sign-up bonuses for online sites that offer everything the city of Lights is famous for. In fact, a 2020 retelling would mean Duke and Gonzo wouldn’t need to leave their living room to set off on their grand adventure—though we’re not sure who we’d trust with that screenplay.

Twenty years after the film’s release, it's time to take a look at what Gilliam and his motley crew got right with this experimental, visual feast.

Journey to Find a Director

One staple characteristic of Thompson’s writing style is its surrealism. Despite making his career as a journalist and novelist, Thompson is known for a style of writing filled with heavy imagery. In many ways, this made adapting Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas for the big screen a nightmare.

Before Terry Gilliam accepted the role as director, many others attempted to co-write a screenplay with Thompson. Directors from Martin Scorsese to Oliver Stone took a swing at adapting the author's topsy-turvy world to a big-screen masterpiece only to be intimidated by the nature of the content as well as the madman who had created the world of Dr. Gonzo and Raoul Duke.

Originally, Terry Gilliam undertook a supporting role in producing the film. However, after a major dispute between the author and the original director, Alex Cox of Repo Man, Terry Gilliam was left in the director’s chair.

Gilliam, famous for his work on Monty Python’s Flying Circus, was fit for the job. It also helped that he admired the book—and the author. In fact, Gilliam was such a fan that the film retains entire pages of dialogue taken straight from the book.

Visual Appeal: Hallucinatory

Terry Gilliam notoriously hired cinematographer Nicola Pecorini after learning he had only one eye. Apparently, Gilliam found Pecorini’s mention of his missing eye hilarious and beneficial for the role the cinematographer would be undertaking. After all, Gilliam was going for a visual appeal that would require a unique perspective.

Pecorini utilized psychedelic and surreal paintings from Robert Yarber to help influence the film’s hallucinatory tone and style. The result is a one-hour-and-fifty-nine-minute sequence that can be both maddening and stunning.

Light sources can’t be clearly identified in the film, neon colors are used to create an overwhelming visual effect, and constant movement (from Depp’s character Raoul Duke to fifteen animatronic lizards) adds to a truly unique experience.

The film moves between desert scenes to compact club scenes, but Pecorini and Gilliam manage to maintain the same thread of kinesthetic tone. In terms of shading and saturation, the pair utilized various filmstock to overwhelm scenes with rich shades of color.

The result is an unforgettable sequence of madness. For some, that madness is genius. It’s uncomfortable and overwhelming, but it’s also atmospheric and moving. And for others, the visuals weren’t the issue with the film—it was the narrative that was lacking.

Depp & Del Toro Go Gonzo & Duke

Benicio del Toro’s performance was ill-received by most critics. In fact, the actor still considers his role as Dr. Gonzo to be one of his most difficult undertakings. Not only was it physically difficult to pack on fifty pounds for a role, but it was morally disheartening to then be criticized for that performance.

On the other hand, Johnny Depp seemed to have a hey-day with his on-screen adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson. In one of the interviews, he revealed that he spent several months living in Thompson’s basement to prepare for the role.

The two became fast friends as Depp spent time in the author's Aspen, Colorado estate prior to filming. Following the wrap of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Depp would go on to reprise other roles for Thompson following the author’s death in 2005.

In 2008, Depp narrated a piece called Gonzo: the Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson. In 2011, he played a character named Kemp in The Rum Diary, which was an adaptation of the author’s earliest works. And finally, Depp voice acted for Thompson in a 2017 documentary by Rolling Stone called Rolling Stone: Stories From the Edge.

Since Thompson passed away, Depp has become one of the most trusted voices regarding the author’s character and legacy. He’s been interviewed many times to convey the startling genius of the father of Gonzo journalism.

Though many point to Gilliam’s artistic dedication to Thompson’s vision, as well as Pecorini’s eclectic tastes, as the main reasons for the film’s cult success, many others point to Depp.

He plays a fantastical version of the author and carries this role so thoroughly in front of the camera that any true fan of Thompson has to admire his efforts.

5 Best Movie Remakes of All Time

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Mon, 06 Apr 2020 15:37:00 +0000

Movie remakes can sometimes be dismissed as shameless cash-grabs, although in the hands of the right directors it’s possible for them to equal or even exceed the works that inspired them.
Here is a run through a few remakes that manage to fall into this exclusive club, upping the ante in terms of pure quality and watchability.

Casino Royale

Although it was the first ever novel to feature James Bond, the movie adaptation that eventually made it to cinemas was a pseudo-spoof rather than a genuine spy thriller. So when Daniel Craig finally stepped into the shoes of 007 almost half a century later, it was a relief to see that the remake was easily able to eclipse the half-baked original outing.
From the glamorous setting of Montenegro’s most famous casinos to the action, romance, betrayal and heartbreak of the plot, 2006’s Casino Royale was a fitting reboot for the Bond franchise as a whole, reminding audiences why land-based gambling was still relevant in an age when it was increasingly common to play at a casino online.

The Departed

Most viewers will not have realised that Martin Scorsese’s Bostonian gangster epic was actually a remake of Asian action thriller Infernal Affairs, but anyone who had managed to catch the original prior to seeing this Americanised retelling of the story would have immediately noticed the plot similarities.
What makes Scorsese’s film worthy of a place on this list are the powerhouse performances that are on display throughout. From Leonardo Di Caprio’s emotionally volatile undercover cop to smaller roles pitched perfectly by the likes of Mark Wahlberg and Alec Baldwin, almost every actor is giving their all here, perhaps with the exception of Ray Winstone whose accent gets the better of him.

True Grit

The role of gravel-voiced, ornery US Marshal Rooster Cogburn was one which Jeff Bridges was born to play, and the Coen Brothers piloted the remake of the John Wayne original admirably, while also introducing audiences to actress-turned-pop star Hailee Steinfeld.
Other elements which make 2010’s True Grit memorable include appearances by Josh Brolin and Matt Damon as fellow gun-slingers, while the pithy dialogue and delightful chemistry between the two leads buoy it above your average 21st century western.

Dawn Of The Dead

Along with 28 Days Later and Shaun Of The Dead, this 2004 remake of George A. Romero’s iconic zombie apocalypse movie helped to popularise shambling corpses once more and led to a trend which is still rumbling on to this day.
Whether or not you think that Zack Snyder’s Dawn Of The Dead is superior to the original is down to taste, but the faster movement of the zombies and the impressive action set pieces, along with plenty of tense moments and buckets of gore, definitely give the remake a lot of appeal. It also does away with some of the more on-the-nose satirical elements found in the earlier iteration of the story, while updating some of the social commentary for modern audiences.

Scarface

Another film which is not usually thought of as a remake, this 80s underworld classic is still revered for its seedy reinterpreting of the American dream through the eyes of an immigrant-turned-drug kingpin played by Al Pacino.

Like the original, with which it shares its title, Scarface was controversial upon its release and did not earn a warm reception from various censorship boards worldwide, even if critics were kinder to it and audiences remain hooked on what it has to offer to this day. There is even reportedly another remake on the horizon, although whether this is a sensible step is up for debate.

Left to chance - why Hollywood loves the roulette wheel

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Sat, 02 Nov 2019 14:46:00 +0000

Left to chance - why Hollywood loves the roulette wheel

There is no shortage of iconic movie scenes set in casinos, from Casino Royale to Ocean’s Eleven, two examples of movies where the remakes far outdid the 1960s originals. But when it comes to using a casino game as a plot device, film directors will invariably turn to the roulette wheel.

In part, it is because of the random nature of the game. The idea of fate taking a hand is one that crops up time and again, and the very phrase “spinning the wheel” is one that has entered the everyday vernacular. But the simplicity of a game of roulette also makes it the perfect tool for a film director.

If a character is playing poker, half the audience is likely to be a step behind. He’s got a pair of kings – is that good? In roulette, whether the bet is on a single number or a color, there’s no ambiguity and we can all see at once whether the gambler has got lucky. Let’s take a look at some classic films from across the years where the roulette wheel has played a starring role.

Casablanca (1942)

77 years on, Casablanca continues to entrance new audiences, and the scene in Rick’s casino gives us a perfect insight into what makes Bogart’s lead character tick. It’s also one of the few occasions when the outcome of the game is down to more than chance. When a young man sits down at the wheel, willing to risk it all to win enough money to fly himself and his wife to safety, Rick says “Have you tried 22 tonight?” and directs an inscrutable glance at the croupier. It comes up not once but twice, and Bogart sends the young couple on their way with the advice “Cash it in and don’t come back.”

Diamonds are Forever (1971)

No Bond film is complete without a casino scene, and plenty of the action in this underrated Sean Connery romp takes place in Circus Circus on the Las Vegas strip. While it is the craps game that really pushes the plot along, Bond finds himself at the roulette wheel twice. Early on, he uses it as an impromptu weapon to dispatch an unfortunate assailant head-first, while later in the movie, he attracts attention with a straight-up win on 17.

Lost in America (1985)

After finding fame in the Airplane movies, Julie Hagerty went on to star alongside Albert Brooks in this road movie, which he also wrote and directed. The pair of yuppies decide to cash in everything they own and hit the road in a Winnebago, but disaster strikes when Hagerty’s character goes to the roulette wheel and tries to channel the power of Casablanca, repeatedly betting on 22. This one’s something of a forgotten gem and is well worth seeking out.

Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)

To talk too much about the plot of this film noir would be to ruin the experience. Suffice it to say that nothing is ever as it seems and the roulette wheel that stands in the reception area of the eponymous hotel is an almost constant presence. Its importance to the overall plot becomes clear in the second half of the movie.

Why Timothy Dalton was the best Bond

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Wed, 15 May 2019 08:41:00 +0000

Why Timothy Dalton was the best Bond

Who’s your favourite Bond? It is a question that has been asked time and again, and we can be certain it will get a whole new airing when Daniel Craig’s tenure comes to an end later this year. Answers generally come in three categories. The first is the traditionalists. Sean Connery was Bond, he will always be Bond and anyone else is a poor imitation. The second is the Generation X-ers. To them, Bond is about driving a Lotus underwater, wrestling in space with Jaws and – ahem – attempting re-entry with Lois Chiles, and Roger Moore is their man. Finally, there are those who are not afraid to move with the times, and think the modern day production values mean the films of the Craig era are on a superior level than all that has come before. These are all reasonable enough views, but they leave out one important fact. The best Bond of them all appeared in just two films in the late 80s. Here’s why Timothy Dalton deserves to be recognised at the best Bond of them all.

He wasn’t Roger Moore
That might sound cruel, but the fact is that the Moore era took Bond in a direction that was ever further from Ian Fleming’s original vision. Taken at face value, there’s nothing wrong with that, but Dalton snapped Bond back into place. He was every inch the ruthless assassin, and what little backstory was glimpsed revealed a troubled and tormented soul. No “eyebrow acting” or pithy one liners here – just the gritty reality of what the life of a secret agent really does to a man.

But he got the girls
Despite losing the charm and social skills, Dalton nevertheless revived the glamour of the Connery days, and the old tagline of “women want him, men want to be him,” came back into sharp focus. These movies came out when the AIDS epidemic was at its height, so there was less of the bed-hopping, but that just made the interactions with leading ladies Maryam D’Abo, Carey Lowell and Talisa Soto all the more intense and memorable.

The best casino scene
Bond and casinos, it’s a match made in heaven and has formed the backdrop to many of the top scenes across the years. But arguably, Licence to Kill has the best one of them all. Blackjack is a game anyone can understand, so we never feel a step behind as we might when the game is Baccarat or poker. The tension is palpable as Dalton sits alongside Carey Lowell and has Talisa Soto turn the cards, while drug lord Franz Sanchez, played by Robert Davi, sees his money gradually disappearing.

We were left begging for more
Sean Connery made a couple of ill-advised returns, most notably in the almost self-parodying outing that was Never Say Never Again. Roger Moore was nudging 60 when he filmed A View to a Kill, and he looked it. But legal problems meant that there was a six year gap after License to Kill, and we never saw Timothy Dalton in the tuxedo again. Always leave them begging for more, they say. In this case, it is more a case of wondering what might have been.

Greatest On Screen Portrayals of Batman

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Fri, 14 Dec 2018 15:43:00 +0000

Greatest On Screen Portrayals of Batman

Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger, Batman has become one of the most loved, respected and featured superheroes in entertainment history, earning his own movies, graphic novels, countless memorabilia and even video games. We’ve had the full spectrum of campy, action packed and dark gritty dramatic representations of Gotham’s favourite son, but which ones are the best? Let’s take a look at some of the greatest on-screen portrayals of the infamous Dark Knight.

Michael Keaton

Michael Keaton starred in both the 1989 Tim Burton epic Batman, and its sequel Batman Returns opposite Jack Nicholson’s Joker, and Danny DeVito’s Penguin. The films were a huge success despite the initial controversy of Keaton’s casting due to his type casting as a comedy actor. The film paved the way for Superhero films as we know them today, and the hugely successful animated series that followed.

Adam West

Adam West is one of the most famous actors to have portrayed Batman, starring in the infamous 1960’s family friendly TV series and its subsequent big screen adaptation Batman: The Movie. The series was known for its similarity to the comic books and it’s light hearted, almost cartoonish approach to the character, a far cry from the dramatic, gritty portrayal of the 21st century.

Kevin Conroy

The ultimate Batman voice, Kevin Conroy has played the voice of Batman for almost 25 years, spanning at least 9 different television series, 12 animated movies and 7 video games. No other actor has played Batman for so long or featured as many times. He first appeared in the 1992 animated series, and his first feature length appearance was the 1993 film Mask of the Phantasm.

Christian Bale

Christian Bale played a much grittier Batman in the 2005 Christopher Nolan reboot Batman Begins that also starred Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes and Michael Cain. The film was a huge success, and spawned a trilogy, with 2008’s The Dark Knight and 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises. The trilogy proved to be the most successful on-screen representation of Batman, grossing an incredible $2.464 billion dollars at the box office.

Lewis Wilson

Although not the most famous version of Gotham’s Knight, Lewis Wilson’s is without a doubt one of the most important, as he was the first actor ever to portray Batman on screen, all the way back in 1943. The story line follows the Batman attempting to defeat the sabotage schemes of Japanese agent Dr. Daka operating in Gotham City at the height of World War II. Serving Daka are his traitorous American henchmen.

Val Kilmer

In 1995 after Michael Keaton had dropped out due to creative differences, Val Kilmer signed on to play the caped crusader in Batman Forever without either reading the script, or finding out who the director was. Batman Forever's tone was significantly different from the previous instalments, becoming more family-friendly as Warner Bros. believed that the previous film, Batman Returns failed to out-gross its predecessor due to complaints about the film's violence and dark overtones. It also starred Jim Carrey as The Riddler and Tommy Lee Jones as Harvey Two Face.

Think we hit the nail on the head? For the best Batman games and slots, head to Paddy Power!

Tarantino’s Star Trek Movie Just Keeps on Getting Weirder

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Thu, 28 Dec 2017 12:21:00 +0000

One of the weirdest pieces of news to come out of 2017 was Quentin Tarantino pitching a Star Trek movie - and possibly even wanting to get behind the camera on it. The latest development on the news is that he has managed to convince Paramount to make the movie R-rated. Insiders were putting rumours out there that Mark L. Smith, whose writing credits include The Revenant, was the top choice of the studio to pen the screenplay. The rumours were clearly true, as it has now been confirmed that Smith is on board. He’ll get to work on the script, while Tarantino continues to work on his Charles Manson project. The latter project has yet to be named but features the 1969 Manson family murders as a backdrop in the film, which is in the midst of pursuing major acting talent after Sony won a hard-fought bidding war over distribution rights. Tarantino has reportedly approached Margot Robbie about the idea of playing Sharon Tate, a woman who was murdered by the Mansons. Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise, and Brad Pitt are all looking to make the cast.

"Quentin Tarantino" (CC BY 2.0) by Slackerwood

Dialogue or no dialogue? That is the question! If Tarantino does indeed direct the movie, it will be one of a limited number of occasions that he would direct a movie that he didn’t write. With Smith’s script for The Revenant being short on dialogue compared with Tarantino’s verbose style (the director has been known to pen 165-page screenplays of mostly dialogue), the movie should make for a very interesting result. This is likely to be especially true when you throw in producer J.J. Abrams’ own unique style. The strange gets stranger Star Trek has always had a reputation for being a bit on the strange side: strange actors, strange uniforms, strange fans. And now it boasts a strange filmmaking partnership. Still, it hasn’t stopped the franchise from being one of the most beloved in popular culture; not just in the movies, of course - its roots are steeped in the enormously popular TV show, which has spawned an endless amount of spin-offs. It has also made its mark with a plethora of merchandise, from mugs and toys to board games and puzzles. Numerous video games have also been released, including 2017’s Star Trek: Bridge Crew. There are even Star Trek online casino games. For instance, Oddschecker features casino sites with free bets and no deposits, such as 888casino, which include a Star Trek slot game. And now we have one of the most exciting and strangest teams in recent movie memory so we can certainly expect lots more news to come out of the project in the coming weeks and months.

Tarantino’s swansong? Tarantino had previously vowed to make no more than 10 films. Star Trek would be his 10th so whether he has made his final film or not remains to be seen. If you’re still trying to wrap your brain around this project, you’re not the only one. Tarantino is an odd choice for the latest big-screen instalment in the classic Gene Roddenberry franchise, and details remain somewhat thin. Long before news of the project came to light, however, Tarantino confessed that he was a huge fan. Tarantino also clearly has appeal at the box office - something which Paramount could use. With sci-fi being dominated by Disney of late, via the endless Marvel and Star Wars movies, Star Trek is Paramount’s key franchise. Deadpool was evidence that an R-rated version of superhero fare is capable of pulling in the big numbers so Tarantino’s Star Trek could be just what Paramount need.

The Last Jedi Review

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Tue, 12 Dec 2017 17:00:00 +0000

The Most Bad Ass Star Wars Moments Ever

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 07 Dec 2017 08:03:00 +0000

We're just over a week out from Star Wars: The Last Jedi finally hitting the big screen with the force (heh heh) of a fully functioning space station, and already our tiny little minds are already racing to think of what the long awaited sequel has in store for us and our favorite inhabitants of a galaxy far, far away. While a VERY healthy opening box office is a foregone conclusion, predicting what director Rian Johnson has planned for his first stab at Star Wars is a much harder job. But taking into account over forty years of stories across all types of media, he'll be hard pressed to deliver something crazier than these bad ass moments from Star Wars history.

The Yuuzhan Vong Invasion

Long before JJ Abrams said, 'Let's call it The Force Awakens', the adventures of Luke Skywalker and company continued in the Expanded Universe, an ever growing series of novels that opened up the Star Wars universe in a way George Lucas never dreamed of. While most of the books consisted of our heroes fighting a seemingly never ending parade of former Imperials and the odd galaxy destroying weapon, things were thrown for a loop with the introduction of the Yuuzhan Vong, a race of warrior aliens from a galaxy farther away than we could ever imagine. Religious zealots who viewed anything mechanical as blasphemy, they existed outside of the Force and thus untouched by most Force based attacks, which the New Jedi Order discovered in their disastrous first encounter. With powerful, gentically engineered, purely organic weapons, the Yuuzhan Vong soon made short work of the galaxy, conquering every planet in their path. They also nutured a deep hatred for the Jedi, possessing a power they had been denied, and offered freedom to those they captured in exchange for turning in any Jedi Knight. Their years long invasion had a lasting effect on the Star Wars universe, not least the death of Chewbacca, and the beginnings of Jacen Solo's, son of Han and Leia, descent into the Dark Side.

Anything Involving Grand Admiral Thrawn

Step aside Darth Maul, there's a new ultimate bad ass in the Star Wars Universe, and his name is Grand Admiral Thrawn. First coming to our attention in Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire, the book that kicked off the whole Expanded Universe, Thrawn is one of the Emperor's most ruthless allies, commanding the entire Imperial navy with a mixture of ruthless cunning and tactical brilliance, while lacking the megalomania that proved to be his master's undoing. With deep blue skin and piercing red eyes, he made quite the first impression when he was first introduced, taking the broken Empire we saw at the end of Return of the Jedi and making it once again the most powerful force in the galaxy. Not even his death at the end of what is now lovingly known as the Thrawn trilogy could stop him, with the character being used time and time again, from prequels in the expanded universe to even jumping media to appear in computer games and the third season of the fantastic Star Wars: Rebels cartoon.

That Twist In Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

Long before Bioware took the gaming world by storm (then ruined all the goodwill they garnered with the ending of the third game) with Mass Effect, they had delivered possibly the best Star Wars game ever with Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. A role playing game set almost 4000 years before The Phantom Menace, players found themselves in control of a Jedi tasked with taking down Darth Malak, a Dark Lord of the Sith who is razing the galaxy with The Star Forge, an endless source of military resources that once belonged to Malak's ruthless former master, Darth Revan, who is long since dead. While it's boundless amounts of fun traveling the galaxy with a mismatched group of soldiers, scoundrels, and droids, every choice you make leaving you on the edge of the light or dark side, the true beauty of the game comes about halfway through. Nearing the Star Forge, the player themselves is revealed as Revan, left for dead after being betrayed by Malak and brainwashed by the Jedi council to no longer pose a threat to the galaxy. The reveal is masterfully handled, and gives a new meaning to the moral choices the player is presented with: will you go down the light path as penance for your evil ways, or pick up where you left off down the path of the dark side.

One of our most IMPORTANT Episodes EVER

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Mon, 14 Aug 2017 16:15:00 +0000

Following on from our article yesterday on The Movie Bit.com regarding written content on the site, here we explain the decision more in depth and discuss where we're going!

This is our latest, epic, episode!

That's all we wrote!

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Sun, 13 Aug 2017 09:15:00 +0000

Hello beautiful readers. Just over 8 years ago I started The Movie Bit. It was a passion project. It was a labour of love. Writers came and went and contributed some wonderful and thought provoking content. You lovely folks commented, tweeted, downloaded and swore at us :)

However, over the last few months I find myself not only having less and less time to work on the site, but I’m also finding my passion and love for movies dwindling. I’ve been a movie fan since I was shitting myself nearly 40 years ago. Movies have been a huge part of my life and no doubt they’ve forged my personality along the way. I always blame Mel Gibson for my kissing techniques. I blame Marty McFly for my driving and I blame Darth Vader for my lightsaber skills.

I find myself getting more and more frustrated as time goes on as certain studios more or less ignore sites like us completely. Sites with passion for film. As opposed to hap hazard portal sites where movie related news is as disposable as the cat memes the same sites deal out. While these sites do well, and that's fine people will be left without intelligent, insightful and legitimate movie punditry, reviews and so on. The likes of Disney and Warner Bros along with Paramount have been exceptional to deal with and work alongside, as have some of the Irish distributors like Element Pictures and Eclipse Pictures. The rest of them however….well..I’m keeping the swearing to a minimum.

When you step back and look at things, it’s a crazy world, this whole movie website thing. Studios need you to talk about their products. They moan when things are critical. Some will even black list you when things get too opinionated. And, like most things in Hollywood, you’re only flavor of the month for a short while. And then they move onto the next movie site. And eventually the circle starts up again. And, as much as that annoys me, I get that. In years to come, we'll probably be in a bunch of Adam Sandler movies as opposed to a Tarantino classic! Then there is the complete switch to social media where people are literally consuming as much content as they can shove into their eyeballs while on the toilet. That's fine, but unfortunately as a bi-product sites like us find it harder to get audiences. And find it harder to get good content from studios and everywhere else. Far from an excuse, but that's they way things are going. Again, I'm not blaming anybody, but this is the digital environment that we all live in.
All that said, we’ve had an amazing ride here. We’ve brought some of the biggest names in movies to you in exclusive interviews, the majority of which are on our podcast...all for free. I’ve been privileged to talk to some of my heroes. We won awards. We had the highest rated, number one movie podcast on iTunes countless times. We hosted exclusive screenings. We did full on Facebook live videos, professionally produced. We did a damn lot. Nobody got paid, everybody did this for a labor of love. Which was probably the biggest problem….in hindsight.

So, what does all this mean, considering you’ve waded through the above horse poop. The site will be producing very little written content moving forward. And when I say very little, I mean next to nothing. As of typing, this will be the 10,368th article that we’ve published.
Which is a phenomenal amount of content when you think about it. Is it our last article? More than likely. Any other articles may just be links to future podcasts..but more on that in a bit.

As for the much loved podcast, things are a bit up in the air there. I haven’t quite decided on which way to go with this. In a perfect world, it’ll stay on it’s weekly upload schedule. It may move to every other week or monthly, or it may go away completely. Ultimately, I’m finding it incredibly hard to put all of this down. The site and the podcast have played such a part in my life for nearly a decade. Whether it’s ego or what, I don’t know. I just don’t want to pull the trigger on this old dog. But I know, that's the right thing to do.
I’ve developed other projects that are taking my time, I’ve two kids, a wife, an amazing day job and no life. Something's gotta give.

So to all the writers that have passed through, thank you. You’ve made this site what it is. Especially to Tom White. Tom has been the glue that has held The Movie Bit together for so long. He worked without asking. He worked harder without encouragement. He worked his ass off. The dude gave such a fuck about this place. Quick story. A while back myself and Tom shared a room attending a movie event. It may well have been a Disney Day. I generally wake early, so I was lying in bed listening to a snoring Tom. Not long after, he woke up. I stayed motionless. What’s the first thing he did? Picked up his phone and started logging onto the site looking at stats. This blew my mind, that anybody would care so much. So, thanks, buddy!

Most of all, thank you to YOU. You’ve read, you’ve lingered, you’ve enjoyed and you’ve endured. You’ll never know how much it meant and still means to know that you guys read and loved what we produced. THANK YOU!

So, that’s it. That’s all we wrote! I’ll leave you with a parting quote from a certain, scruffy looking nerf herder!

“You’re all clear kid, now let’s blow this thing and go home!” Vic Barry
Editor

The reasons why Dunkirk isn't that good!

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Mon, 31 Jul 2017 16:41:00 +0000

Episode 318 looks at why Dunkirk isn't as good as it's being made out to be. And more bad news for the DC Universe, movie wise at least!

This is our latest, epic, episode!

The reason Spider-Man Homecoming has Iron Man in it #317

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Mon, 10 Jul 2017 18:11:00 +0000

Cars 3 and Spider-Man Homecoming get reviewed. And is Robert Downey Jr. the biggest problem in Spider-Man Homecoming? Find out in the latest episode!

This is our latest, epic, episode!

Spider-man Homecoming Review

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Sun, 09 Jul 2017 07:55:00 +0000

The hype is good for Spider-Man Homecoming, as it comes home to Marvel Studios (sort of)

We got our first glimpse of the rebooted / re imagined (fill in your own Hollywood bullshit term here)
web slinger in Captain America Civil War. Tom Holland's Spidey was on point, but his Peter Parker was a bit off. Thankfully though, Holland's performance in Homecoming is nothing less than stellar! In fact, his Peter Parker is leaps and bounds ahead of his Spidey!

Plot wise, Homecoming is a bit on the standard side. Hero coming of age type deal, fattened up with short appearances from Iron-Man / Tony Stark. Throw in Michael Keaton as the Vulture and you have a movie that entertains when and where it should but ultimately falls down with too much meandering exposition and scenes that seem to drag on for an eternity.

While audiences won't have to endure another origin story, the movie still drags it's heels and takes, what feels like an eternity to get going. When it does get going, it's fantastic. Some top notch set pieces (tragically given away in the 10 billion trailers and clips that were released) abound and are genuinely spectacular to watch.

The humor Marvel fans have come to love is here too with Parker's best friend, Ned (Jacob Batalon) providing much of the hilarity. And yes, there's plenty of visual gags and little "blink and you'll miss them" nods throughout.

The aforementioned Tom Holland plays a blinder, and I do wonder about Robert Downey Jr. Nobody plays Tony Stark better, but he seems just here for the sake of it, in case Holland wasn't able to carry the movie on his shoulders. And carry it he does! Michael Keaton, channeling some Birdman is fantastic as The Vulture. Genuinely one of the best things about the movie and outside of Loki, is certainly the most interesting Marvel big screen villain to date.

Overall, far from a disaster, Spider-Man Homecoming does entertain, but it's bogged down with scenes that drag you back out of the web it does such a good job of capturing you with (enough of the spidey puns)

Worth a watch! Just!!!

The Music Video That Was Baby Driver Before Baby Driver

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Jul 2017 20:40:00 +0000

It’s been one week since Edgar Wright’s heist movie masterpiece Baby Driver (read our five star review here) screeched onto the big screen, offering audiences a fun and, more importantly, unique alternative to the usual Summer blockbusters. It’s success has even seen Sony approach Wright about a potential sequel. But few people know that this movie has been in development since 1994. Proof of that can found in the music video for Mint Royale’s Blue Song that Wright directed way back in 2003. Starring Noel Fielding (as well as Fielding’s Mighty Boosh co-hort Julian Barret and Wright regulars Michael Smiley and Nick Frost) in the role that would eventually go to Ansel Elgort, it adapts the movies opening and showcased what the director had planned for the future hit. The worst thing about it is that it makes me long for a version of the movie with this cast. Check it out for yourself below.

The Long In Development Gemini Man Finally Gets The Green Light

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 07 Jul 2017 20:23:00 +0000

Way back in 1997, leafing through the pages of Empire (the movie lovers Internet before the Internet existed) I stumbled across news of an intriguing little action called Gemini Man. Nothing to do with the The Invisible Man-inspired miniseries of the same name, the story followed a grizzled government assassin targeted for termination. The kicker was that his would-be killer was a younger clone of himself. 25 years younger to be exact, at the peak of his abilities. You better believe this blew my young mind back then, especially when Mel Gibson was announced to be taking on the roles. No two actors playing the younger and older versions of the character, the same actor in both roles. The problem with this ambitious idea was that the technology didn’t exist to pull this effect off. But with The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Ant-Man, Captain America: Civil War, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 showcasing the leaps and bounds this technology has taken in recent years, the stage is set for Gemini Man to finally reach the big screen.

After years of doing the rounds in Hollywood, where it was earmarked for directors such as Tony Scott, Curtis Hanson, and Joe Carnahan (who went as far as making a sizzle reel with Clint Eastwood in the lead role), the movie has now fallen into the hands of Ang Lee, who has proven a deft hand with CG heavy projects like Life of Pi, with a release set for October 2019. What’s more, a star has already been found in the form of Will Smith. While not my first choice (I’m still hung up on Mel Gibson. Surely some script revisions could be done?), the chance to see Smith from the 90’s is one nostalgia hit I think everyone whats to partake of. If the movie can live up to the decades of hype around it remains to be seen, but I think this is one concept that will peak everyone’s interest.

Baby Driver Review

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 27 Jun 2017 18:47:00 +0000

It’s no secret that Edgar Wright is a goddamn wizard in the editing suite. From his time on sitcom Spaced to Shaun of the Dead and right on through to Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, he has wowed audiences with his mastery of head spinning smash cuts and dizzying close ups. Couple that with his inventive, charming and funny scripts, every movie he delivers should be considered a big deal. But his latest, Baby Driver, is different. Percolating in his brain since 1994, this stylish fast paced heist movie is his masterpiece, an editing tour de force that marries its actions perfectly with a killer soundtrack, and proves an action movie can be as smart as it is thrilling.

Baby (Ansel Elgort) is the best getaway driver in the business, a real “Mozart in a go-kart”. Suffering from permanent tinnitus, the result of a car accident that killed both his parents, he relies on an endless stream of music to drown it out, living his life to the beat of his own personal soundtrack. In debt to criminal mastermind Doc (Kevin Spacey), he serves him as driver for all his nefarious plans. But when he falls for a waitress named Debora (Lily James), Baby finds leaving his life of crime is harder than he expected.

Wright wastes no time in letting you what you are in for with it’s fast paced opening which will have you on the edge of your seat just as you have settled in. The whole movie plays as a musical as the likes of T. Rex, Golden Earring, and Queen fade in and out, with characters moving in time to their infectious beat. Gun shots ring out in time with every drumbeat, tires squeal with every guitar riff. The action moves as fast as Baby drives, and it’s awe-inspiring that Wright was able to keep up with it. Any other director would have got lost in the jumble of spinning tires and streaking headlights, but Wright has planned every set piece with meticulous precision. Everything he wants you to see is up on the screen in crisp, clear detail, making for some of the most exhilarating action sequences you’ve seen all year.

But it’s not all about fast cars and daring heists. The story at Baby Driver’s heart is incredibly sweet and charming, and while it’s a simple 'The Boy finding a way out of his horrible life in the arms of The Girl’ type tale, Wright’s sharp and witty script makes it so much more than that. From the whip smart dialogue to the quieter, character driven moments, it rarely puts a foot wrong. The narrative may slow down in the second act, it’s needed as both a palate cleanser for what came before and getting you ready for the seriously manic final act. The hard turn it takes will hit you out of nowhere, but it feels totally earned and is the perfect crescendo for this intoxicating piece of film making.

The assembled cast is another home run for Wright, with Elgort incredibly likeable and endearing as Baby, making all his little quirks, from a seemingly endless supply of sunglasses to an iPod for every mode, feel natural and organic. James works well against Elgort as the bubbly Debora, their growing relationship never feeling forced, but she does feel underwritten at times. The supporting cast compliment the main pair perfectly. Spacey is having a blast as the menacing Doc, bagging the best lines and clearly relishing every time they leave his lips. He’s challenged in the intensity stakes by Jamie Foxx’s psychotic Bats, and Baby’s criminal crew is rounded out by high class Bonnie and Clyde-alikes Buddy and Darling (Jon Hamm and Eiza González), who become so much more than the comic relief they first appear to be.

Ambitious and utterly original, Baby Driver is a truly dazzling spectacle. You won’t see the likes of this too often (maybe never again), so get to the cinema now!!!!

Cars 3 Preview Screening

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Tue, 27 Jun 2017 09:20:00 +0000

Disney•Pixar CARS 3 Special Preview Screening

Disney•Pixar CARS 3 is released on July 14, but we’re teaming up with our friends at The Walt Disney Company to bring you an exclusive preview screening of CARS 3 on Sunday July 9 at The Gate Cinema, North Gate Bridge, Cork.

We’ve a bunch of family passes to give away! Each family pass is 4 tickets. To be in with a chance of winning just fill in the form below!

Disney•Pixar CARS 3 Special Preview Screening

CARS 3 cruises into Irish cinemas on July 14, 2017.

Synopsis

Blindsided by a new generation of blazing-fast racers, the legendary Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) is suddenly pushed out of the sport he loves. To get back in the game, he will need the help of an eager young race technician, Cruz Ramirez, with her own plan to win, plus inspiration from the late Fabulous Hudson Hornet and a few unexpected turns. Proving that #95 isn’t through yet will test the heart of a champion on Piston Cup Racing’s biggest stage!

Directed by Brian Fee (storyboard artist Cars, Cars 2) and produced by Kevin Reher

(A Bug’s Life, La Luna short), CARS 3 cruises into Irish cinemas on 14th July, 2017.

WATCH THE LATEST TRAILER

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRA35dp9izQ

www.PixarCars.ie

Check out facebook.com/WaltDisneyStudiosIE & twitter.com/DisneyStudiosIE for all the

latest news on CARS 3

Is Transformers The Last Knight really that bad? #316

noreply@blogger.com (Vic Barry) — Mon, 26 Jun 2017 17:12:00 +0000

Is Transformers: The Last Knight really that bad? Is it a good thing that Lord and Miller got the boot from the Han Solo movie?

This is our latest, epic, episode!

Transformers: The Last Knight Review

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 16:16:00 +0000

It’s been ten years since Michael Bay put his own explosion heavy spin on Transformers, and while the hardcore fans of Hasbro’s toys that turn into other toys hate Bayformers more than Garfield hates Mondays, the four movie ride was enjoyable for the most part, despite some ups and downs (racial insensitivity, objectification of women, ludicrously long runtimes. Y’know, the Bay trademarks). Now, the Master of Bayhem is ready to take his leave of the franchise with The Last Knight, but rather than bidding farewell with a bang, he delivers an incomprehensible mess of everything his critics lambast him for that will fill you with dread when you realise Paramount wants to spin a shared universe off this pile of garbage.

The story is business as usual: there’s an ancient McGuffin (in this case an artefact that reaches back to the time of King Arthur) the bad guys want, the Autobots and Mark Wahlberg’s Cade Yaeger have to stop them, and the military are stuck in the middle. Cue explosions, shed loads of special effects, and vague attempts at humour. The only difference here is that it makes even less sense than what came before, making the bloated 149 minute runtime that much more unbearable. Throwing in an ancient prophecy (isn’t there always one of those?) and delving into the secret history of the Transformers on Earth, it trips from one plot point to the other with no real rhyme or reason as if the writer’s room assembled for the Transformers shared universe just wrote down whatever popped into their heads. If you actually enjoyed the series so far, prepare to have your intelligence insulted as everything that has come before is completely contradicted or made null and void as the movie bends over backwards to squeeze even more milage out the concept (and I know that continuity is anyone’s real concern with these movies, but there are some major reveals here that immediately fall apart under any type of scrutiny that came off as just plain lazy). Just to compound the movie’s problems even more, Bay has decided to present the movie is three different aspect ratios. This is nothing new, but while this practise is usually used to make action scenes pop that much more, Bay will cycle through them in one scene of just two people talking, the ratios changing what feels like every two minutes. It soon grates heavily on your nerves, and makes watching the movie a massive chore.

After an hour of exposition, The Last Knight finally kicks into high gear with some state of the art special effects and impressive action, and Bay plays to these strengths as you would expect him to. Too bad that after the first set piece we’re treated to, you’re hit over the head with another 30 minute deluge of exposition. The characters don’t help matters at all, with Wahlberg imbuing Yaeger with all the spirt and enthusiasm of an actor just waiting on a paycheque. The returning Josh Duhamel, John Turtturo and Stanley Tucci (oddly NOT playing his character from Age of Extinction) sleepwalk through their roles, and newcomers Anthony Hopkins, Isabela Moner, and Laura Haddock struggle with the weak script. Hopkins is especially cringe worthy, coming across as a hip (in his own mind) dementia patient.

The much ballyhooed heel turn from Optimus Prime that is plastered over every piece of advertising doesn’t add up to much more than a cheap gimmick, with the character having a grand total of 20 minutes of screen time. The rest of the digital cast do look spectacular (a giant junk bot voiced by Steve Buscemi is especially impressive), but the cast of Transformers is so bloated that characters just drop in and out of proceedings. The movies big bad, Transformers creator Quintessa, makes no impact whatsoever. The returning Decepticons figure heavily into the movie’s first act then disappear until they are hastily reassembled for the finale. Even the Autobots, the heroes of the piece and the things the movie is named after, don’t get much to do, with much of the story revolving around Wahlberg. I know this has been a major factor in the Bayformers so far, but at least he tried to hide that fact before. Now, it’s like he does;t even care anymore.

Bloated, incomprehensible, and downright insulting, Transformers: The Last Knight takes every bad thing a Summer blockbuster can be and do, and turns it all the way up to eleven.