Filmstalker Reviews

Pandorum

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:37:19 +0000

I watched the Christian Alvart film Antibodies and was totally taken in by how good the story and how well filmed it was, I thought that Alvart was heading to Hollywood, and he hinted as much after the screening, and probably to remake Antikörper or Antibodies (Filmstalker review) first of all.

However he wasn't going to remake his own film. He headed to Hollywood and started with Case 39 which struggled to get a release, and next was Pandorum, which surprisingly got a first release.

Pandorum pitched itself as a science fiction psychological horror, and it was something that I thought would have suited Alvart perfectly. I was sorely disappointed.

Coraline

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 07:46:09 +0000

Looking back I have no idea why I decided to avoid Coraline in the cinema, I mean now when I look at the two creative names behind the project I can see the powerful attraction in the conveyor belt factories of Hollywood, Henry Selick and Neil Gaiman. That should have been enough for me.

The twisted imagination of Gaiman and his superb storytelling and characterisation, and the magic of Selick as an animator as seen by his beautiful The Nightmare Before Christmas and the way he brought to life his figures.

So why did I avoid Coraline? Well I assume it's because I thought it was too close to a children's film, despite the words to the contrary when it arrived. I can now say I was wrong, and if that's holding you back then I tell you now to drop the idea and watch it.

Zombieland

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 16:37:10 +0000

Zombieland. For those of you who know about that British advert that ends with "It does what it says on the tin", that describes Zombieland really well. The trailer and the blurb describe a world filled with zombies and some survivors meeting on their various travels and teaming up to not only survive, but to live life to the full, and following a few rules along the way they'll make sure they do just that.

That's your story. The film delivers exactly that. Well that and plenty of humour, fun and action, as well as a great performance from Woody Harrelson and strong supporting from the other cast members, and a style that's a little unique, a little quirky, and always fun. Welcome to Zombieland, don't forget your seatbelt, that's rule number...

Fast & Furious

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 22:57:53 +0000

I'm a fan of fast cars, action and adventure, and the Fast and the Furious franchise delivers just that. Okay, it hasn't been steady in its delivery, and it's not exactly deep, but it does what it says on the tin, and for fans of action and cars that's just great. Call it a guilty pleasure or not, but the adventures of the the underground racers is something that makes for entertaining action sequences, in the right hands.

Justin Lin picks up the franchise once again in the fourth outing called Fast & Furious, after directing The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, the third film in the franchise that only featured Dominic Toretto, aka Vin Diesel, in the closing few moments of the film as a reference to the other films. Fast & Furious could be seen as a return to what the strengths of the franchise are, and those strengths are in the leads and their relationships together. That's Diesel and Paul Walker who plays Brian O'Conner, and the supporting cast of Michelle Rodriguez as Letty and Jordana Brewster as Mia Toretto.

The question is does the film manage to recapture the strengths of the original Fast & Furious and return the franchise to form?

The Good, The Bad and the Weird (Joheunnom nabbeunnom isanghannom)

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:54:37 +0000

The Good, The Bad and the Weird, or Joheunnom nabbeunnom isanghannom, is an interesting concept for a film from the Korean film-maker Kim Ji-woon that can be summed up quite simply, a Korean Western. It sounds incredibly bizarre but when you see the trailers you find that you're instantly drawn to the style and the energy of the film, and the trailers aren't just cut cleverly either, this is what you're in store for with the film.

The trailer showed an extremely stylish film with long action takes, sweeping camera zooming you right into the action, and there's plenty of it too, and to top it all a strong line-up of actors.

It seemed a great film to watch on Blu-ray, style, big shots, great action, it seemed perfectly suited to the high definition screen.

The Boat that Rocked (Pirate Radio)

Sun, 20 Sep 2009 13:37:26 +0000

I have to admit that The Boat that Rocked is one of those films that came out and had little effect on me. There was an interesting cast, proven film-makers with the Working Title team and Richard Curtis, but the idea at the core of the film didn't fire me up.

That idea was about a pirate radio station off the coast of Britain broadcasting rock and roll to a nation that was loving it while the government tried to ban it. All the while there was music and fun.

No it didn't really appeal at the time. Now I've seen it I do think it's better than the original blurb made out, but it still falls somewhat short of the Working Title successes.

District 9

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 15:49:47 +0000

The hype for District 9 began before the film even saw the light of day when Neill Blomkamp, the director, and Peter Jackson, the producer, seemed set to make Halo before it fell through in typical Hollywood fashion. Fans of the Halo franchise were devastated because the test footage that Blomkamp had created looked exciting and raw. That was when District 9 was born.

Already those who were awaiting Halo were excited, could this be a science fiction film that would show the studios behind the failed Halo attempt what they could have done? Well yes, but did they manage to pull it off? A story smaller in scope, scale and budget?

Inglorious Basterds

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 01:20:14 +0000

I tried not to be swayed by any of the press or hype regarding Inglorious Basterds before I saw it, and believe me that took a fair amount of work because the sway on this film has been huge. From the moment it was seen in Cannes the negative press was pouring out about it, then there was the talk of the re-cut and finally it was being seen, and the majority were loving it and claiming how great Quentin Tarantino was, again. In fact more than that, the general press were coming out with some great quotes and ratings. Now it would seem, after the cut, the majority loved it.

So keeping my distance from all this I tried to keep an open mind while I wrote articles about it, after all he was tackling a genre I love, the war film, and being a fan of films like The Dirty Dozen I thought that this couldn't fail to disappoint. It's also fair to say I am a fan of his films to date.

That is, until now.

Den du Frygter (Fear Me Not)

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:17:40 +0000

Den du Frygter (Fear Me Not) struck me as an interesting film from the moment I read the blurb. Not only was Ulrich Thomsen starring, an actor I'd seen a number of times before and been very impressed by, but the plot sounded incredibly interesting. It looks at a normal family man who, during a break from work, gets involved in a drugs trial and follows the changes in his life and the effects of those changes on the ones around him.

It's a powerful thriller that is very well paced. It keeps everything bounded firmly in reality, and builds on the small details. Add to that the strong to great performances from the cast and the well written script, and Fear Me Not provides for a great film with quite a few surprises.

Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:29:07 +0000

Le Donk had a few things going for it when I read about it in the Edinburgh International Film Festival brochure, it comes from Shane Meadows, who some proclaim to be the saviour of British cinema, something that does the rest of the business an injustice I think, and it starred Paddy Considine. With that I thought how could I not go and see the film? Add to that the fact that when I entered the press screening it was amazingly packed, every seat was taken, and the heat began building. This was perhaps the most packed screening I'd seen as a member of the press at the EIFF. Ever.

The other thing that was noticeable was the audience interaction with the film. There was laughter and applause, and come the time to leave when the footage kicked in during the titles, people who had left early, myself included because of the incredible heat, were turning back to crowd in the doorways and see the remaining moments. Now that's got to be the sign of a bunch of people who enjoyed a film, surely, and this lot were all press, people who are far too quick to leap out and show no signs of emotion during a film screening.

Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 23:45:31 +0000

This is the second part to the life of Jacques Mesrine from writer Abdel Raouf Dafri and director Jean-François Richet starring the superb Vincent Cassel. Both films and stories are written, conceived and filmed well, but in the second part there is a feeling of going through similar ground that you'd already been through with the main character, just a little older and a little less wiser. There are a number of scenes in the story where I wondered if they were really needed, but others were most definitely there for a strong reason.

While the first film in the two part series of Jacques Mesrine's life, starring the superb Vincent Cassel in the lead role, was very about his rise as a gangster, the escalation of violence, and of the crimes he committed, in the second film there's a little more of the person behind the gangster and his attempts at a life while playing with the pursuing police, keeping the title of Public Enemy No. 1, and enjoying the public attention.

He seems to begin to believe in the hype surrounding him, and while he becomes more and more hunted he also becomes more and more audacious, which ultimately leads to the controversial ending of his criminal life.

Mesrine: Killer Instinct

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:24:58 +0000

Vincent Cassel is a stunning actor, of that there is little doubt, he's hugely charismatic and can easily command the screen as well as pulling you right into his performance. If you haven't watched any of his films as yet then I suggest you start now with Death Instinct.

This film shows him portraying a man who reached nigh on legendary status in both France and Quebec, and was at one time labelled public enemy number one in his native France. The man is Jacques Mesrine, and Cassel's performance of him is mesmerising in a film that charts his arrival into a world of crime and his rise to become one of the most wanted men in France.

The Maiden Heist

Wed, 12 Aug 2009 22:53:51 +0000

The Maiden Heist attracted me for three big reasons Christopher Walken, Morgan Freeman and William H. Macy. It's also fair to say that the idea of these guys playing lighter characters was a big factor, but Walken was the one that pulled me in the most.

Peter Hewitt directed the film, and he gave us...errmmm...Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, The Borrowers, and a bunch of other films. Oh okay, like Thunderpants and Garfield. Happy now? That wasn't any of the reasons for watching the film.

Well that was a hell of a mixed bag, but the plot and the lead actors were the factors that sucked me into the film, and despite a mishandling of the plot late on, for the most part it was good.

High Life

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 23:02:24 +0000

High Life was an unusual film that I was drawn to for three names, Timothy Olyphant, Stephen Eric McIntyre and Joe Anderson, but in particular it was the idea of seeing Olyphant in a rather different role to the one I'd seen him in to date, a role that really stood against the last film I'd seen him in, Die Hard 4.0 (Live Free or Die Hard) (Filmstalker review). Coupled with the plot of course, because it sounded an interesting mish-mash and an idea that really was going to deliver some dark comedy, or so I hoped.

It's really hard to tell though when relying on the blurb delivered in a film festival brochure, because they never tell you the truth about a bad film, why would they? They want to sell it to you, then that means that the truly good and great don't stand out nearly as much as they should do. So you have to take a chance, and sometimes I take bold chances, this was one of them.

Duplicity

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 07:44:55 +0000

I honestly can't remember why I didn't go and see this in the cinema, after all it stars Julia Roberts and Clive Owen who were really great together in Closer (Filmstalker review), and there's Tom Wilkinson, Paul Giamatti, and a number of other recognisable actors, and it's written and directed by Tony Gilroy who wrote such films as Extreme Measures, The Devil's Advocate, Armageddon, The Bourne Identity, Supremacy and Ultimatum, as well as the recent State of Play, and let's not forget he wrote and directed Michael Clayton.

So why didn't I go and see it? Well it got quite a lot of negative comments, or rather average, middle of the road, comments. Comments that were ranging from unexcited to the more negative. However after watching it I wish I had seen it at the time, even though I can see the problems with the film and why it didn't receive the praise you might have thought from that officious role call. It is a good film and the two leads are great, but as I said, the story does have some problems.