What I've Just Watched: Part 3 - The Search for Spock

Noah (2014), written and directed by Darren Aronofsky, working his his biggest budget since The Fountain (2006), but even that wasn't as expensive as what Noah is, but it's a very personal film for Aronofsky, as the story of Noah interested him from an early age, and he wanted to tell the story his way. It's a good comeback for the biblical epic, even if it is a more darker and human interpretation with a lot of CGI. Noah (Russell Crowe) has been plagued by dreams and visions of a great flood wiping out humanity. He travels to see his grandfather Methuselah (Anthony Hopkins), who gives him a seed from the Garden of Eden. It grows into a forest, and Noah learns his purpose is to build a vessel to hold God's animals. He is helped by wife Naameh (Jennifer Connelly), sons Ham (Logan Lerman), Shem (Douglas Booth), Japeth (Leo McHugh Carroll) and Shem's wife Ila (Emma Watson). However, Noah's actions incur the wrath of evil tribal leader Tubal-Cain (Ray Winstone), who wants to see Noah fail, but Noah stands his ground, then it starts to rain, in multitude. It could be seen as a companion piece to go with The Fountain, but you have to admire Aronofsky's balls for making a film like this when biblical epics can get religious sorts all riled up these days, but he succeeds, just about. The dialogue leaves little to be desired, but it is a visually stunning epic. 4/5



Rio 2 (2014), after Rio came out in 2011 and became a world success, a sequel was inevitable and it was greenlit immediately. Director and creator Carlos Saldanha had loads of places and scenarios the characters could get into, and settled on moving the action further into Brazil. While there's a lot of colour and stunning visuals on display, but they've crammed too much into this film, making it too overwhelming. Blue macaws Blu (Jesse Eisenberg) and Jewel (Anne Hathaway) now have children with Carla (Rachel Crow), Bia (Amandla Stenberg) and Tiago (Pierce Gagnon) and are enjoying life in Rio. They see on TV that more blue macaws have been found deep in the Amazon region, so Blu and Jewel and the family fly out with friends Rafael (George Lopez), Nico (Jamie Foxx) and Pedro (will.i.am) fly out to find the macaws. When they get there, Jewel reunites with her long lost father, Eduardo (Andy Garcia), who loves his grandkids, but is scornful of Blu. Meanwhile, Nigel the cockatoo (Jemaine Clement) is on their trail too, out for revenge. There's so many subplots and little bits going on, you wish the makers had either made it a slightly longer film to a least give the subplots some room to breath, or lost at least one or two of the subplots. Apart from that, it looks lovely and has a lot of local colour and set ups, but it should have been simpler. 3/5

Geronimo: An American Legend (1993), directed by Walter Hill (The Warriors (1979), The Long Riders (1980) and Southern Comfort (1981)) and written by John Milius (The Wind and the Lion (1975) and Big Wednesday (1978)), this is a thoughtful and epic western based on the life and times of a legendary Native American whose life and name have become legend, it's a good film but it does tend to drag about half way. In 1886, a group of Apache Indians have come to an agreement with the U.S. Government to settle on a reservation approved for them by Brigader General George Crook (Gene Hackman). But, not all the Apache's can adjust to life on the reservation, one in particular, Geronimo (Wes Studi) leads a group of warriors to humiliate the government officials. But they're ready to strike back, with Lieutenant Charles Gatewood (Jason Patric) leading the search for Geronimo, with help from scout leader Al Sieber (Robert Duvall) and young graduate Britton Davis (Matt Damon). But, Geronimo's determination brings about respect from most people. It's well made, with an epic, rousing score by Hill regular Ry Cooder, and it has some good performances throughout, and Studi makes a good Geronimo. But, it feels a bit old fashioned, and Hill had trouble when it came to editing the film and it was recut heavily, and he was unhappy with how the film was marketed. 3/5



Pain & Gain (2013), Michael Bay makes a small, personal film. No really. This is Bay's first film to cost less than $100 million since The Rock (1996), this cost $26 million, and it's based on a true story of an unbelievable crime that happened. This is a very grisly and very black comedy, but it is a tad overlong, but it shows that Bay can still do Bayhem on a very low-budget, and still good results, and this has a brilliant cast. Miami 1994, and a trio of dim wannabe criminals, bodybuilder Daniel Lugo (Mark Wahlberg), born again Christian Paul Doyle (Dwayne Johnson) and trainer Adrian Doorbal (Anthony Mackie) decide to rob Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub), all because they envy his lifestyle, and want what he has. They capture him and keep him prisoner for 30 days, until Kershaw snaps and gives them everything. Lugo, Doyle and Doorbal live the highlife living off Kershaw's money, but it won't last. Kershaw gets in touch with retired private detective Ed Du Bois, III (Ed Harris), who takes a chance on Kershaw's case, simply because it sounds so unbelievable, it could actually be true. At one point in the film, things get so unbelievable, it has to remind viewers on screen that this is still a true story. But, Wahlberg, Johnson and Mackie relish at being the wannabe Scarface's in Miami. But, with it's bright colours and costumes, it just reminds viewers of how garish and loud the 1990's truly were. 3.5/5

Yojimbo (1961), directed by Akira Kurosawa, whose star had been well on the rise since Seven Samurai (1954) and Throne of Blood (1957). Kurosawa had always been inspired by the works of Dashiell Hammett, and two Hammett works, Red Harvest (1929) and The Glass Key (1931) would inspire this tale of samurai heroics in 19th Century Japan. This film in particular would inspire The Man With No Name spaghetti westerns to come. In 1860, a masterless ronin (Toshiro Mifune) arrives in a small Japanese town ravaged by a gang war between two local gangsters Seibei (Seizaburo Kawazu) and Ushitora (Kyu Sazanka). This ronin gives himself the name of Kuwabatake Sanjuro (Mulberry Field Thirty), and is able to talk his way into joining Seibei's gang, and proves his worth by killing a number of Ushitora's henchmen. It's not long before the ronin joins Ushitora's side, and he uses this to his advantage, and the ronin is able to play both sides for fools, and using cunning and guile, is able to have them take down each other. But Seibei's brother Unosuke (Tatsuya Nakadai) learns of the ronin's plan. It's a good period drama with some very well choreographed action set pieces for it's day, and it's a much tighter and leaner film than Seven Samurai, and it's more focused and to the point. It influenced countless action films and westerns, from A Fistful of Dollars (1964) to Walter Hill's Last Man Standing (1996) to Samurai Jack. 4/5



Rebecca (1940), Alfred Hitchcock's first Hollywood film, and ironically set in Cornwall, based upon Daphne du Maurier's 1938 novel of the same name, which had been optioned by Hollywood super-producer David O. Selznick, whose take on Gone With The Wind (1939) would make history. The story was tailor-made for Hitchcock, and featured all his usual hallmarks which he brings out brilliantly on screen. In Monte Carlo, widower Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier) meets a young woman (Joan Fontaine), who is a travel companion for Edythe Van Hopper (Florence Bates). Maxim falls in love, and he wants to marry this woman he knows so little about, after a whirlwind romance, she becomes the new Mrs. de Winter, and they come home to the de Winter home of Manderley. It seems like paradise, but Mrs. de Winter is left intimidated by the housekeeper Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson), who cold. Plus, the memories and obsession of Maxim's late wife Rebecca still haunt the house, and it drives Mrs. de Winter to insanity, and there's more to come. Hitchcock has great fun with the story, and it's very engaging with some brilliant performances along the way, Olivier and Fontaine hated each other on set, but you wouldn't be able to tell on screen, as they have brilliant chemistry. The film rightfully won a Best Picture Oscar, Hitchcock missed out on Best Director. Criminal... 5/5

Richard III (1995), an offbeat but powerful adaptation of William Shakespeare's classic play, retooled and adapted for the Royal National Theatre by Ian McKellen and Richard Loncraine, set in an alternate timeline with an alternate Royal Family, their reimagining of the classic play became a dark but visually stunning all-star film. Set in a Facist vision of England in the 1930's, this depicts a civil war erupting within the Royal Family, which is divided up into different houses. The House of Lancaster claims to have the right to the British throne, but The House of York, led by King Edward IV (John Wood) holds that title. But, his brother, the Machiavellian Richard of Gloucester (McKellen) has other ideas in mind, he wants the throne too, so he has to murder George, Duke of Clarence (Nigel Hawthorne) and his two nephews. The whole play is a kind of allegory on the rise of the Nazi's, with Richard III as Adolf Hitler, but would Hitler have been as evil has this to get to power?? Maybe, but Ian McKellen has such fun in the role, breaking the fourth wall and scheming being the backs of those closest to him. The film captures the 1930's wonderfully, and is beautifully shot in wide-angles by Peter Biziou, and it features a stunning supporting cast, including Annette Bening, Maggie Smith, Jim Broadbent, Kristin Scott Thomas, Bill Paterson, Jim Carter, Edward Hardwicke, Tim McInnerny and Robert Downey Jr. as foppish social climber Earl Rivers. 4/5



Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (2013), Aha!! Steve Coogan's tactless creation finally makes the leap to the big screen, 22 years after he first appeared on BBC Radio 4 in On The Hour. It took Coogan and his team nearly a decade to work out what scenario they wanted Partridge to get himself into on the big screen, and they picked the right one here, and it is a very funny and very entertaining comedy. Alan Partridge (Coogan) is the host of Mid-Morning Matters on North Norfolk Digital in Norwich. But, the station is taken over by media conglomerate Shape, who rebrand the station and sack late night Irish DJ Pat Farrell (Colm Meaney), who subsequently returns to the station with a gun and holds the station hostage, and the only person he'll talk to the negotiations is Alan. Reluctant at first, Alan goes in and manages to get some hostages freed, and Alan soon becomes the face of the siege, giving him a lot of publicity and Alan see's it as an opportunity to become famous again, but what Pat doesn't know is that it was Alan who suggested the management sack Pat. TV to film transfers can be tricky, some work and some don't, but this works perfectly. There's a good mix of physical comedy and verbal comedy, with Partridge making his usual social gaffe's perfectly. Plus, it's also a love letter to Norwich and Norfolk, and it has the structure of a Hollywood blockbuster, only smaller. 4/5

Donald McKinney wrote:

I'm surprised you haven't seen the new one yet!!

I know! Hopefully over the weekend.

Rampart (1st view) - A film that stars roughly of Hollywood, but only Woody Harrelson in the lead role makes an impression. Not often I get bored by a film, but I was by this - 2/5

Muppets Most Wanted (1st view) - There aren't that many sequels that begin their story the very second the previous film finishes and there are even fewer that than proceed to have the stars of the sequel sing a song about the sequel they're making, but the Muppets Most Wanted does both. It's a brilliantly funny witty and toe-tappingly catchy way to start a film that, for the most part, manages to equal, and often surpass, the rather excellent 2011 film.

I still do hope that a Muppet film will eventually be made that is simply a feature length Muppet Show, as the glimpses of Muppet show-style sketches in both films make me think it would work. Christoph Waltz may well have been cast simply for the joke of Waltz waltzing, but it's exactly the kind of thing that could have taken up a three minutes segment of one of the TV episodes. We get barely 20 seconds in the film and that's a shame. Still, the Muppet films have always been more reliant on plot than the TV series ever was and if The Muppets was an updated verstiion of The Muppet Movie, then Most Wanted is a glorious hybrid of The Great Muppet Caper and Muppets Take Manhattan.

The Muppet films, just like the show, have sometimes suffered in the past when it comes to the human casting. Some of the guest stars in the show just didn't seem at all comfortable with the furry mayhem surrounding them and the last film had some increduble pointless cameos. Most Wanted gives prominent screen time to three big names from the world of Tv comedy. I love Tina Fey, I Love Ty Burrell, I hate Ricky Gervias. As Meat Loaf said, two out of three ain't bad. And it's true that Gervais is quite poissibly the worst aspect of the film, but he does appear at least to be in on the joke and is more than willing to be upstaged by the Muppets, especially by Kermit Constantine (A great decison to have the villain of the piece be a non-human). Ty Burrel has the best of the human roles, as a Clouseau-inspired Interpol inspector who teams up witth Sam Eagle's CIA agent. The two share a number of the films best and funniest scenes. I want to see a spinoff with the pair, prefably with all their dialogue in song.

The cameos are still hit and miss. It's fun spotting them and you do wonder how getting these people involved comes around. Do the writers and director sit around a table with a big ol' checklist of names they want to be included? Some are pointless (Chloë Grace Moretz, Lady Gaga, Usher - And yes, I didn't know who that was despte the fact he was playing an usher), some were funny (Christoph Waltz, Tom Hollander and Hugh Bonnevile, Tom HIddleston, Stanley Tucci) and a few had me laughing more than was probably healthy (the triple act of Jermaine Clement, Danny Trejo and Ray Liotta. Exactly why was it so funny I have no idea, but their dancing and doo-wopping in the background during The Big House song really tickled my funny bone). Plus we get a little Conchords reunion!

The sings are catchy and fun. I doubt any will take home an Oscar though I'd love it of We're Doing A Sequel or Interrogation Song did. Unlike The Muppets none of the songs here deal with what is it to be human (or not), they're generally just here to be funny, much like the film itself.Most Wanted is a lot less sentimental than the previous offering and the main source of emotion, the feelings that the Muppet gang have towards Kermit, are much easier to swallow and be moved by than the identity crisis of Walter.

The Muppets themselves are as wonderful, funny and endearing as ever, but like last time I wish we'd seen more of certain characters. Which is why I still want a feature length Muppet show! But for now I'm more than more than happy with this film which often felt more in keeping with the the Muppets from thirty five years ago than any other Muppet offering from the past two decades - 4/5*





The Chess Players (1st view) - Satyajit Ray's aboiut 19th century India just before the rebellion of 1857. Very good - 4/5*

Unstoppable (2nd view) - As far as runaway train films go, you could do a lot worse than this - 4/5

Year One (1st view) - Mostly terrible - 2/5*

Scarface (1983), directed by Brian De Palma, then hot off making Dressed to Kill (1980) and Blow Out (1981), was offered this remake of Howard Hawks' 1932 film Scarface was updated to Miami in the 1980's by writer Oliver Stone. It split people down the middle upon release, but time has been kind to this film, it's rags to riches story with the structure of a Shakespearian tragedy. It's still a powerful and gritty film even today. In 1980, Cuban refugee Tony Montana (Al Pacino) comes to America with his best friend Manny (Steve Bauer), after being moved to a refugee camp, they get out and start working for drug dealer Frank Lopez (Robert Loggia), and he's impressed by Tony's tenacity and has Tony doing more work for him. After Tony makes a deal with Bolivian cocaine kingpin Alejandro Sosa (Paul Shenar), much to Frank's anger. So Tony goes solo, marries Frank's Elvira Hancock (Michelle Pfeiffer). As Tony gets richer, he soon learns the hardships of this business. It's a product of the 1980's and proud of it, and it's a film wallowing in excess, and it's a morality tale about the absolute corruption of absolute power, showing the downside of power and money, but putting De Palma and Pacino together was a winning combination, and it has an absolutely brilliant Giorgio Moroder soundtrack. 5/5



Shanghai Surprise (1986), based upon Tony Kenrick's 1978 novel Faraday's Flowers, and optioned by George Harrison for Handmade Films, and directed by TV director Jim Goddard (Reilly, Ace of Spies (1983) and Kennedy (1983)). This film was hyped to high heaven during production because of it's two stars, but the final results made the film one of the biggest jokes of the 1980's, but it's not the disaster it's made out to be. Set in China in the mid 1930's, it has fortune hunter and glow-in-the-dark tie salesman Glendon Wasey (Sean Penn) is looking to get home to America, but he doesn't have the money to get a boat home. Meanwhile, missionary nurse Gloria Tatlock (Madonna) is looking for a supply of opium to help her patients, however she ends up with Glendon, after a chance encounter with Willie Tuttle (Richard Griffiths), who a year before worked for drug dealer Walter Faraday (Paul Freeman), who is missing, presumed dead. So, Glendon and Gloria team up to look for the supply of opium, which Faraday wanted to get a year before. It's essentially a poor man's Indiana Jones, and although everyone on board went out with good intentions, but it was made to cash in on Penn and Madonna, who had recently got married, plus it had a soundtrack and songs by Harrison, but that doesn't a good film make, and it was downhill for Handmade after that. 2.5/5

The Mummy (1932), after Dracula (1931) and Frankenstein (1931), Universal continued their successful streak of horror films by adapting this story by Nina Wilcox Putnam and Richard Schayer, which was directed by Karl Freund, (cinematographer of Metropolis (1927)), it makes for a good horror film but it would lead to a load of sequels and remakes. This was the original one, and maybe that's how it should have maybe stayed. Sir Joseph Whemple (Arthur Byron) is leading an archaeological expedition in Egypt in 1921, looking for the tomb of Imhotep (Boris Karloff), an Egyptian priest who was mummified for trying to revive his forbidden lover. Sir Joseph's assistant Ralph Norton (Bramwell Fletcher) ends up reading from an ancient scroll they found, despite the warnings of Dr. Muller (Edward Van Sloan) telling them it would bring nothing but trouble. Imhotep is summoned back to life and 10 years later, Imhotep is going around Cairo under the name of Ardath Bey, and he happens to encounter Helen Grosvenor (Zita Johann), who bears a resemblence to his one forbidden lover. This was inspired by the opening of Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922, and while Universal didn't do any sequels, Hammer did some over 20 years later, and there were the Mummy films in the 90's and 00's, but this is quite effective and they manage to do a bit with a low budget and imagination. 4/5



The Invisible Man (1933), based upon the 1897 book by H. G. Wells, and brought to the screen by James Whale (Frankenstein (1931)), this is an effective and spooky horror film which had some good special effects for it's day, and it's one of the best sci-fi horror stories that anyone can relate to. The story focuses on what happens after the experiment, and it manages to be tight, focused and to the point. It begins when Dr. Jack Griffin (Claude Rains) arrives at a pub called the The Lion's Head one snowy night in the village of Iping in Sussex. Griffin is wrapped in bandages and says he wants to be left alone. After he falls behind on his rent and makes a mess in his room, innkeeper Mr. Hall (Forrester Harvey) tries to evict him, but Griffin shows what he's made off, or what he isn't. His lack of appearance shocks everyone, and he goes around Iping causing mischief and crimes. Meanwhile, Griffin's fiance Flora Cranley (Gloria Stuart) and her father Dr. Cranley (Henry Travers) become concerned and go looking for what happened to Griffin. This is a good Universal film, and it made a star out of the then unknown Rains, who Whale cast for his distinctive voice, which comes into it's own during the film. This was eventually followed by 4 sequels, and a few remakes along the way. It'll be a matter of time before another pops up, but this was stunning for it's day. 4/5

I loooooooooooooooooooooooove The Invisible Man

Yeah, I watched a few Universal horrors recently!!

Bride of Frankenstein (1935), after the instant success of Frankenstein (1931), Universal Pictures wanted a sequel, and they got Frankenstein's director James Whale back, and they worked together on finding a suitable plot. Pitches and ideas came and went, but they returned to a passage from Mary Shelley's book that was never adapted for the first film, and that was the genesis for this film, which is a very compelling film. After the events of the first film, Dr. Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) and his Monster (Boris Karloff) are seemingly killed, but they weren't. They survived, but only just. Frankenstein is nursed back to health by his fiancée Elizabeth (Valerie Hobson), during his recovery, Frankenstein is visited by old mentor Doctor Septimus Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger), who wants to help him create a new monster. Meanwhile, the original monster has taken refuge at the house of an old blind hermit (O. P. Heggie), who teaches the monster human feelings and emotions. Meanwhile, Frankenstein and Pretorius create a female version of the monster... This one has more heart and feelings over the original film, and it's actually a more compelling and original film too. It has some good scares for it's day, and Whale created not one but two iconic movie monsters with this film, and it's a doomed love story as well, tragic as well as compelling in equal measure. 4.5/5



The Wolf Man (1941), directed by George Waggner, (Gunfighters (1947) The Fighting Kentuckian (1949) Operation Pacific (1951)) and written by novelist and screenwriter Curt Siodmak, this came about from an abandoned sequel for Universal's less successful Werewolf of London (1935), however when Siodmak pitched this idea, Universal liked it, and rushed it forwards for immediate production as a stand-alone film. Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney, Jr.) returns to his ancestral home in Llanwelly, Wales after learning of the death of his brother. Larry has lived in America for many years, and tries to reconcile with his estranged father Sir John Talbot (Claude Rains). Larry meets local girl Gwen Conliffe (Evelyn Ankers), who runs an antiques shop in the nearby village. Larry is attacked on a nearby moor by a wild beast, and a gypsy fortuneteller named Maleva (Maria Ouspenskaya), tells Larry it was her son Bela (Bela Lugosi), who attacked Larry, in the guise of a wolf. Larry scorns this idea as nonsense, but come full moon, he feels sort of different... This is where the craze for werewolf films began, followed by 4 sequels, a remake or three and countless references in other horror films. The transformation was quite inventive for it's day, although the film takes it's sweet time getting to the money shot, but it's worth it and it has a good cast as well. 3.5/5

Phantom of the Opera (1943), directed by Arthur Lubin (Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (1944), The Thief of Baghdad (1961) and The Incredible Mr. Limpet (1964)), and adapted from Gaston Leroux's 1910 novel. This had been previously adapted by Universal in 1925, however with the success of other horrors made by Universal, they decided to remake it, this time in glorious Technicolor, which looks so vivid for it's day. Set at the Paris Opera House, violinist Erique Claudin (Claude Rains) has been in the orchestra for 20 years and is starting to lose his touch, and he's dismissed. He doesn't have enough money, as he's been the benefactor of young soprano Christine Dubois (Susanna Foster). However, he has a concerto which he has taken to music publishers Maurice Pleyel (Miles Mander) & Georgette Desjardins (Paul Marion), who seemingly steal his concerto. A fight breaks out, and is disfigured by etching acid. Erique flees and hides in the sewers of the Opera House. He takes revenge against those who rubbed him up the wrong way, but he still has love for Christine. It's an old fashioned tale of revenge, and it's a story that keeps coming back in different forms, from Hammer's 1962 take, to Phantom of the Paradise (1974) to Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical, but this version is visually stunning and considerable money was clearly spent on this version, and it won 2 Oscars as well. 4/5 



Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), directed by Jack Arnold, (It Came From Outer Space (1953), Tarantula (1955) and The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)), this came a full decade after the success of many of Universal's successful run of monster movies, and this was amongst the last of them. It does have it's moments, but it does feel a river-set version of one of Universal's Mummy films, but it has an impacting legacy. Set on a geology expedition somewhere in the Amazon, this has leader Dr. Carl Maia (Antonio Moreno), along with friend and former student from California, Dr. David Reed (Richard Carlson), looking for evidence of a link of evolution between land and sea animals. Also along on the expedition are Captain Lucas (Nestor Paiva), Reed's girlfriend Kay Lawrence (Julie Adams), and scientist Dr. Edwin Thompson (Whit Bissell). Arriving at the Amazon camp, they find Maia's research team have been murdered by someone, or something. They think it might have been a jaguar, but after searching the river, they find it's something else more deadly... It's a bit of a daft film, but director Arnold manages to get some good scares from this one, while it doesn't quite have the charm of the early Universal horrors, it was successful enough to get 2 sequels, Revenge of the Creature (1955) and The Creature Walks Among Us (1956), it has it's moments. 3/5

America's Sweethearts (2001), directed by Joe Roth (Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise (1987) and Christmas with the Kranks (2004)), and written and produced by Billy Crystal, who had also wanted to direct it, but had trouble raising the money. When he took it to Roth, then head of Revolution Studios, Roth loved it so much, he wanted to direct it, Crystal agreed. It's a good comedy, sending up Hollywood publicity. Celebrity Hollywood couple Gwen Harrison (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Eddie Thomas (John Cusack) are known as 'America's Sweethearts', and they've made a number of films together. However, after the production of their latest film, they had a highly publicised split, and the film's eccentric director Hal Weidmann (Christopher Walken), won't show a finished cut. Publicist Lee Phillips (Crystal) sets up a press junket at a remote hotel in Nevada in an attempt to get the couple back together to help the film's success. Gwen brings along her sister and personal assistant, Kiki (Julia Roberts), and new lover Hector (Hank Azaria), which fuel's Eddie's rage. It's a funny Hollywood satire, and there seems to be all too few of them these days, but this is a fluffy, lightweight comedy rather than dealing heavily with the wheeling-dealing of Hollywood. Crystal, unsurprisingly gets all the best lines in the film, but they are very funny one-liners. 4/5



Duplex (2003), directed by Danny DeVito, who is a master of directing black comedies like Throw Momma from the Train (1987), The War of the Roses (1989) and Death to Smoochy (2002). This one was written by Simpson's writer Larry Doyle (Looney Tunes: Back in Action (2003)). It's a very unlikeable comedy, but that's the point of the film, but it's mean-spirited nature unfortunately does work against it. Young married couple Alex Rose (Ben Stiller) and Nancy Kendricks (Drew Barrymore) are looking for a perfect place to live, and they find an apartment in Brooklyn, however they find they'll be sharing the property with Mrs. Connelly (Mrs. Connelly), an elderly Irish lady who lives in a flat upstairs. Alex and Nancy don't think this'll be a problem, but once they move in, they find that she watches her TV at full volume at night and she has brass band recitals too, plus she puts on Alex to do little jobs, when Alex is trying to write a novel. Alex and Nancy eventually decide to try and kill Mrs. Connelly, but that proves to be near-impossible. If this had been made by Ealing in the 1950's, you would have had a masterpiece on your hands, but something is lost in this film, whether something got lost in translation between script and screen, something is off kilter. The tone of this one is all over the place, and DeVito can't get it right despite good intentions. 2/5

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (1st view) - I don't think it's anyway near as good as the first, but it's grown on me a lot in the few days since I saw it and I like how the plot is being used in Agents Of Shield. - 4/5*





Fast Girls (1st view) - Not one of the great sports films - 3/5*

Her (2013), written and directed by Spike Jonze, his first film since the wonderfully enchanting family fantasy Where The Wild Things Are (2009), here he creates a romantic comedy-drama, which when you feel away the layers from, turns out to be a futuristic science-fiction film, and it's a parable on our relationships with computers and modern technology, but it's got heart as well as brains, with a wry sense of humour too. Set in 2025, Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) works for a company that writes heartfelt passionate letters by people who can't or won't write. Theodore himself is a lonely yet soulful man who is struggling to get over a breakup he had with childhood sweetheart  Catherine (Rooney Mara), he has had brief relationships with Amelia (Olivia Wilde), which didn't last, and Amy (Amy Adams) when he was in college. When Theodore buys a talking operating system with artificial intelligence, he calls it Samantha (Scarlett Johansson), and she's always there when Theodore needs comfort and support, and they become close, even though Samantha isn't real... It's a very ambient and thoughtful film with a gentle score by Arcade Fire about the complexity of relationships, it's always good to see Jonze make films as he has a unique view on the world. He gets a brilliant lead performance from Phoenix, and he and Johansson spark off each other wonderfully, even though you can't see Johansson. 5/5



Bullseye! (1990), "Stay out of the black and in the red, nothing in this game for two in a bed." Oh, wait! No, sorry. That's the wrong Bullseye. This one is directed by Michael Winner, (Alarm bells ringing), and is a contender for a film so hilariously bad, it's almost good. It's technical ineptitude is jaw-dropping, and it's hilarious for all the wrong reasons, but you can't tear your eyes away from the mess Winner has made. This has two con-men, Sidney Lipton (Michael Caine) and Garald Bradley-Smith (Roger Moore), who happen to resemble two crooked scientists working on nuclear energy, Dr. Daniel Hicklar (Caine again) and Sir John Bevistock (Moore again). So, they decide to pull off a con against these two, with the help of Willie (Sally Kirkland), however, the real scientists get wind of what the con men are up to, and even though they were arrested by the police, Hicklar and Bevistock escape to try and get even with the two con-men. With a script by the writers of The New Statesman and Birds of a Feather, there is comedy in this hopeless film, but not in the right places. Winner's direction fumbles from one hopeless scene to the next, which is a shame as Caine and Moore make two good double acts. It's a case of "Lets have a look at what you could have won" with this film. Even the extras in the crowd scenes and the police are unconvincing!!  2/5 

Punisher: War Zone (2008), directed by Lexi Alexander (Green Street (2005), this was intended to be a straight-forward sequel to The Punisher (2004), however when Thomas Jane quit the sequel, blaming the producers for changing the film too much, the producers decided to make it part reboot, part sequel. Unfortunately, it's not a case of third time lucky for the franchise, and they won't be trying another one. For about 5 years, Frank Castle (Ray Stevenson), has been The Punisher, taking down organised crime after mob bosses killed his family. After infiltrating a gathering of mob bosses, Castle goes after violent gangster Billy Russoti (Dominic West), and after a battle, Russoti is left hideously disfigured, and he reinvents himself as Jigsaw. Meanwhile, Castle is facing trouble as the New York Police Force has started a Punisher Task Force, led by FBI Agent Paul Budiansky (Colin Salmon) to stop Castle's wave of vigilantism once and for all. Meanwhile, Jigsaw has broke his brother "Loony Bin Jim" (Doug Hutchison) out of jail, to both wreck havoc on New York. Essentially what the Punisher films are in a nutshell are more stylised and graphic Death Wish films, if such a thing was possible. Despite having a good list of character actors in the lead roles, even they can't save the film. Marvel haven't attempted many dark films since this, apart from the Ghost Rider films. 2/5



The Quiet Ones (2014), the new rebooted Hammer rides out again, their follow-up to the successful The Woman in Black (2012), and this one is based on a true story that occurred in Toronto, Canada in 1972. Written and directed by John Pogue, (U.S. Marshals (1998), The Skulls (2000) and Ghost Ship (2002)), this is a Hammer Horror take on a found footage horror film, but it's all been seen before in other horrors like it. Set in Oxford in 1974, and college professor Professor Joseph Coupland (Jared Harris) has been conducting an experiment to prove that the supernatural doesn't exist, and that's it's a mere manifestation of the mind. He's been experimenting on Jane Harper (Olivia Cooke), who had a troubled past and can give off a strange telekinesis. Coupland, along with students Brian McNeil (Sam Claflin), Krissi (Erin Richards) and Harry (Rory Fleck-Byrne) take Jane to a house in the countryside to do their experiments in peace. Jane has manifested an infant only she can see called Evey, and Coupland wants to contain Evey's energy, but Evey has other ideas. The idea has been done before elsewhere, with the likes of The Blair Witch Project (1999) and Paranormal Activity (2007), but there's something about the old-fashioned setting that gives it a quaint charm, and it actually has good performances, including Harris. But it could have been so much better. 3/5

Ikiru (1952), directed and co-written by Akira Kurosawa, this touching and moving drama was partially inspired by Leo Tolstoy's 1886 novella The Death of Ivan Ilyich. You could almost say this is Kurosawa's take on It's A Wonderful Life (1946), and there are parallels in places. But this was the one that helped put Kurosawa on the map as a internationally renowned talent, and it was onwards and upwards after the success of this. Set in Tokyo, bureaucrat Kanji Watanabe (Takashi Shimura) is a middle aged man who has held the same monotonous position for about 30 years, and nothing has changed in that time. His wife is dead, and his son Sakai (Haruo Tanaka) doesn't have much time for his father, only his money. However, when Kanji learns that he has stomach cancer and will die within a year, something changes in him. He decides not to tell his son, and he ends up spending a lot of time in nightclubs in Tokyo. He starts spending more time outside the office and when he meets office employee Toyo Odagiri (Miki Odagiri), he begins to embrace and enjoy life a lot more. It's a sentimental drama without becoming unbearably mawkish, and it's an ode to the joys of life you can find if you just get out of your daily routine more. This would win a Special Prize at the 1954 Berlin International Film Festival, and for his follow-up, Kurosawa unleashed Seven Samurai (1954). 4/5



That Sinking Feeling (1979), the directorial debut of Bill Forsyth, who had been a director, cinematographer, editor and sometime actor in short films and documentaries in Glasgow and around Scotland. His debut feature cost little more than £2,000. All raised by Forsyth from local bookies, workers unions and distillers in and around Glasgow. It's a charming and cheeky little film, with a good sense of humour. It focuses on a group of 4 unemployed Glasgow teenagers, Ronnie (Robert Buchanan), Wal (Billy Greenlees), Andy (John Gordon Sinclair) and Vic (John Hughes). They're all looking for a way to make money, and Ronnie gets an idea of stealing a job-lot of stainless steel sinks from a warehouse and selling them on for profit. However, they need a van, and the ability to get by the night watchman (Gerry Clark). They get a van from Eddie the Driver (Eddie Burt) and they use a bit of cross-dressing to distract the night watchman. The cast was made up of teenagers who went to the Glasgow Youth Theatre, it's a very funny and engaging film, which the cast give convincing, honest performances. It was a small hit when it premiered at the Edinburgh Film Festival, and it enabled Forsyth to go and make Gregory's Girl (1981) and Local Hero (1983). 4/5

Close Up (1st view) - Fascinating Iranian film in which a man defrauds a family by pretending to me a famous film director. This film uses the actual people involved in the real-life case to recreate the events - 4/5*





The Three Musketeers (2nd view) - Good fun - 4/5*





The Other Guys (2nd view) - When I first saw this film three years back I said "I like Mark Wahlberg, Michael Keaton, Samuel L. Jackson, The Rock, Eve Mendes. I don't like Will Ferrell. Still, the odds are in my favour. Unfortunately, this reunites Ferrell with director Adam McKay, a man whose films are about as funny as kneeling on an upturned plug. The Empire review for this film cited Anchorman and Talladega Nights as classics. That made me weep" and gave the films two stars. A rewatch and it's improved, I actually laughed a few times. Maybe it seems better because I saw Anchorman again a few months back, and that felt like I was kneeling on a plug while being poked in the eye with chainsaw - 3/5

R.I.P.D. (1st view) - Men In Black with monsters instead of aliens. Great fun. Another potential franchise that I'd love falls at the first hurdle - 4/5*




The Amazing Spiderman (2nd view) - I still maintain that a truly classic Spiderman won't exist until one utilises the "Spider man, Spiderman, does whatever a spider can" song properly but until then this'll do. I like the Raimi films quite a bit, especially the awesome third film, but they could be almost as great as LOTR and I still wouldn't really love them because they contain Kirsten Dunst. This one doesn't so it's automatically better even if it does feel very, very familiar and contains some mind-boggling plotholes. Great chemistry between Garfield and Stone - 4/5

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014), after the Spider-Man franchise was rebooted with The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), a number of sequels were immediately planned, and this is the first of those sequels to the new Spider-Man franchise, with much of the principal cast and director Marc Webb returning. It's a good sequel, well made and there's a good sense of fun on display, but there is a lot crammed into this film. Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) has spent the last couple of years fighting crime as Spider-Man, and he's hailed as a hero in New York. He's struggling to juggle this life with his relationship with girlfriend Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone), who knows his alter ego, but accepts that. However, he's facing new and much more deadly adversaries, including Electro (Jamie Foxx), who was OsCorp employee Max Dillon, who had a freak accident in a tank full of genetically modified electric eels. Plus, Peter reunites with childhood friend Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), who has inherited his fathers business, and he experiences horrific mutant changes within him. Although it's a good sequel, you do get the nagging feeling that if director Webb and Co. aren't careful, this Spider-Man franchise might end up turning into what Joel Schumacher's Batman films became, plus they do try and squeeze a lot into just over 2 hours. Maybe a shorter films and less baddies may benefit the films. 3.5/5



Throne of Blood (1957), after the double success of Ikiru (1952) and Seven Samurai (1954). Writer and director Akira Kurosawa was given a little more free reign by Toho Studios, who were nearly driven to bankruptcy by Seven Samurai. After his nuclear drama I Live in Fear (1955), he decided to do an adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth, only transfered to feudal Japan. It makes for powerful and gritty viewing. General Miki (Minoru Chiaki) and General Washizu (Toshiro Mifune) are two Samurais who work for local war lord Lord Tsuzuki (Takamaru Sasaki), who defeat their enemies in a ferocious battle. On the way back to Tsuzuki, they come across a Forrest Spirit (Chieko Naniwa), who tells them that Washizu will become Master of North Castle and later Lord of Forest Castle, while Miki will become Commander of Fort One, and his son will become Master of North Castle. Upon returning, Washizu tells this prophecy to his wife Asaji (Isuzu Yamada), who is determined to see these prophecies come true, and she plots to kill Tsuzuki, but consequences follow. It's a good take on Shakespeare's play, even though it takes a few liberties here and there, it keeps the spirit of the source very much alive, and it proves that even if you change a settling, Shakespeare's works will still translate in any language. But it's well made, and it has some good technical moments for it's day. 4/5

The Help (1st view) - Some good performances, some not so good. Felt like an Oscary film but I was still surprised when I read it was nominated for Best Picture, I'd completely forgotten that - 3/5*




Sea Beast (1st view) - A fishing village comes under attack by an invisible sea creature with paralysing saliva. Wikipedia helpfully tells me that this is a part of a strand of TV movies called the Maneater Series. I must watch them all - 3/5*

Up The Chastity Belt (1971), after the success of the TV series Up Pompeii and the spin-off film that followed. A sequel was greenlit, but producer Ned Sherrin and director Bob Kellett decided to take Frankie Howerd's character of Lurcio, and put him in a medieval setting. This was the resulting film, and there's a lot smutty humour and double entendres on display, but it is a very funny film with a lot of familiar faces in it. As a baby, Lurkalot (Howerd) was kidnapped by Sir Braggart de Bombast (Bill Fraser), and left to die, but he was brought up by a family of pigs that belong to Sir Coward de Custard (Graham Crowden). To earn his way, Lurkalot makes love potions and chastity belts. When Sir Braggart challenges Sir Coward to a duel for offending him, Lurkalot through good luck manages to defeat Sir Braggart's champion Sir Grumbell de Grunt (David Prowse), but Sir Braggart tries to kidnap Sir Coward's daughter Lady Lobelia (Anne Aston), although Lurkalot has her dignity locked up in one of his unbreakable chastity belts, and he's got the key and flees to the Crusades. It's a very silly film, and it's very naughty as well, as there's a scene where it portrays Robin Hood and his Merry Men as a band of of very camp homosexuals, but Howerd gets all the best lines, and there's a good cast of who's who of British film and TV of the 1960's and 1970's, and a few other surprises. 3.5/5



This Must Be The Place (2011), written and directed by Paolo Sorrentino, (Il Divo (2008) and The Great Beauty (2013)), this came about after Sorrentino met Sean Penn at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, where Il Divo premiered. Penn wanted to work with Sorrentino, and Sorrentino worked on something with Penn in mind, and the finished result is a very different kind of film, it's a good drama but it requires patience. Retired rock star Cheyenne (Penn) has been retired from music for 20 years, and lives with his wife Jane (Frances McDormand) in a large house on the outskirts of Dublin. When Cheyenne hears his father is dying he travels to New York to reconcile, only to arrive too late. He later learns his father was persecuted by the Nazi's in Auschwitz, mainly at the hands of SS Officer Alois Lange (Heinz Lieven). Cheyenne meets professional Nazi hunter Mordecai Midler (Judd Hirsch), who claims that Lange isn't worth going after, but Cheyenne heads off across America looking for Lange, finding Lange's family and anyone who knew him. This is the sort of film that would split people down the middle, and there is a lot to admire about it, and you haven't seen Penn like this before. But it's a little bit too serious, (well, regarding the subject matter, it had to be), but it might have ruined the film completely if it was a bit more tongue in cheek, but this'll do. 3.5/5

Peeping Tom (1960), produced and directed by Michael Powell, who had gone solo from his usual producing and directing partner Emeric Pressburger by the end of the 1950's. He picked up this screenplay by former WW2 cryptographer Leo Marks. It was a dark and brooding psychological thriller which appalled critics and audiences, and just about destroyed Powell's career, but this is actually a contender for his best film. Mark Lewis (Carl Boehm) works as part of a film crew at a local film studio, and he has aspirations of becoming a filmmaker too. He lives in his late fathers house, although he's leased downstairs to Mrs. Stephens (Maxine Audley) and her daughter Helen (Anna Massey), while Mark has the upstairs to himself, which is taken up by a screening room and dark room. But Mark has a dark secret, he goes out at night, killing women and getting their reactions on film through a hidden camera. Plus, he's taken a liking to Helen, and she's taken a liking to him too. But after Mark kills a stand-in at the studio, the police start to suspect Mark has something sinister to hide. It's a very risky film for it's day, but  it has parallels with what Hitchcock had just done at the time with Psycho (1960). But, it's a very psychologically complex film, and that gives it a sinister edge. Powell's career suffered badly after this, but thanks to Martin Scorsese heavily championing the film, it was given a new lease of life. 5/5



American Hustle (2013), directed by David O. Russell (Three Kings (1999), The Fighter (2010) and Silver Linings Playbook (2012)), this black comedic crime caper is a very entertaining and compelling ensemble piece. Russell brings together a very talented and likeable cast. Even if it is based on true events that happened in the late 1970's, Russell is able to put his stamp on the film and takes entertaining liberties with what happened. Small time businessman and con artist Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) and his partner in crime Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) are caught in a loan scam by FBI agent Richie Di Maso (Bradley Cooper). Rather than send the pair of them to prison, Di Maso decides to use Rosenfeld and Prosser in an operation to entrap New Jersey mayor Carmine Polito (Jeremy Renner), who has been trying to raise money to revitalize gambling in Atlantic City. Di Maso's boss Stoddard Thorsen (Louis C.K.) is against it, but Di Maso goes ahead with it with Irving and Sydney, but when Irving's estranged wife Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence) gets involved, it could ruin everything. It's a film which you'll need to keep up with, as there's a lot going on, but it's very well written, and it captures the gaudiness and bad hairdos of the 1970's. Russell is back on top with this film, and it's a film which puts it's characters up front first, then it deals with the complex plot. It shouldn't work, but it manages to. 4.5/5