"Breaking Dawn pt 1"

The Vampire Chronicles from the pen of Stephanie Meyer come full circle as we begin the first part of the final chapter.

I have to confess that I never expected to be watching these movies, but I sat down one night and watched "Twilight", and was gobsmacked as to how much I enjoyed it. I was not as keen on "New Moon" but did enjoy "Eclipse". So after the journey, here we now are with "Breaking Dawn".

As we all know, "Eclipse" ended with a marriage proposal, and this latest film starts with the marriage ceremony, and poor Jacob going off in a huff. The ceremony takes place, and very beautiful it is too. Then comes the honeymoon. And then we have that first night together, and the hope that Edward will not get too carried away, and do his new bride a mischief. And then comes the kicking of little feet. And then comes the birth....look basically it is the Bella and Edward show.

The majority of the film centres around these two characters, at times when they are on honeymoon, it feels like a brochure for a holiday resort. And because the film centres so much on the newly weds, it suffers because of it. Having not read the books, I cannot comment as to how well the screenplay follows the original book, but it does make for a rather boring film am afraid.
The cast seem to be following the acting by numbers method, with only a fleeting moment of decent acting from Robert Pattinson towards the end of the film.

There is some nice photography at times, and the visuals are very good, but I doubt that the target audience will care about that. All they will be interested in is how quickly does Taylor Lautner get his shirt off? Well I won't spoil this review by answering that question here.

I may watch pt 2, I don't know. maybe it is best to remember the best aspects of the series, and remember the original movie, and "Eclipse"

So much better has gone before........5 out of 10

"Justice"

When your wife is attacked and left for dead, you want to know that the Police are going to do something about it, that justice will prevail.
Will Gerard, is in that very situation, and whilst waiting in the Hospital for news of his wife's condition, he is approached by the mysterious Simon. He tells Will that he and his associates can deal out their own brand of justice, that they will find the man responsible, and 'deal with him' accordingly. In return, they will call on Will at some point in the future to do a service for them, how very "Godfather" of them!!

After some mulling over, Will agrees, and the guilty party is promptly found dead by the Police, the victim of an apparent suicide. Will and his wife return to normal life, until Simon reappears. First a little task here then a little favour there. Then it gets serious, when Simon wants Will to kill a Paedophile. Understandably, Will is reluctant to agree. But when Simon starts to apply considerable pressure, Will agrees. The Paedophile is killed, though the problem is that he is actually an investigative reporter, and doing a piece on Simon and his associates. And before you start wondering why Will cannot go to the Authorities, it is because those aformentioned associates are in some cases working for the Authorities. How bally inconvenient.

Roger Donaldson is a Director whose films I always thoroughly enjoy watching, well until now. he has made some very memorable movies, but this has to rank as probably the worst. The plot is pretty bad, with many holes, and the convenience of the plot overules the opportunity to make a decent thriller. Nicolas Cage brings little to the role of Will, and Guy Pearce is almost playing a Pantomime villain, he should really have a long moustache to twirl.

Should have been a lot better.........3 out of 10

"The Adventures of TinTin: The Secret of the Unicorn"

After an absence of 3 years, Steven Spielberg returns to the Director's chair, with his take on the children's classic Herge's "TinTin".

Young investigative reporter TinTin is out and about one day, minding his own business, and walking round a local market. A model of a ship takes his fancy, and decides to buy it. And it would seem that he is not the only one interested in the ship. The sweetly named villain Sakharine also has a vested interest in the ship, or rather what is inside it. The model is of the Unicorn, a glorious ship from the old days, and Captained by Sir Francis Haddock, who acquired much gold and treasure over the years, although the location of the loot is unknown, and that is where the model ship comes in. For it contains a piece of a 3 part puzzle which when solved will reveal the location of the treasure.

Thus ensues a wonderful global romp, firstly trying to obtain the three pieces of the puzzle and then trying to locate the treasure. Assisting Tintin is Captain Haddock, one of the ancestors of the ships original Captain. They make a splendid double act.
And villain Sakharine has an assortment of rogues to help with his quest.

It reminds one of the old Saturday morning movies, or the old black and white cliff-hanger serials, and we all know that Spielberg has a ponchant for similar material given the similarity of them to his 'Indiana Jones' series of films.
Animation was probably the best option for this film given some of the set pieces and action sequences involved in the movie. With the high standard of animation available today, it goes without saying that it is beautifully done, though as usual the 3D aspect adds practically nothing to the film, and again was a waste of time.

There is a fantastic title sequence, and this also highlights the wonderful score from the legend that is John Williams.
All the cast add their superb vocal talents to the characters they play, though special mention to Andy Serkis who plays the members of the Haddock Family.

Great fun for the whole family...........7 out of 10

"Immortals"

King Hyperion is not very nice, he is a rather unpleasant man, and keen on waging war with the people of Greece, and seeking to find the Epirus Bow, a weapon of tremendous power, which will help in his conquest.
The Gods are over-seeing all that is happening, but are forbidden to interfere by Zeus. There is a shining star amongst the people of Greece, Theseus, One who is said will rise up and do battle and reign supreme.

Yes the film can be compared to its predecessor "300", but for is far superior. The visuals are stunning, the story maybe as old as time itself but makes for good viewing. One way to describe it is watching "Clash of the Titans" on speed.
The cast are all adequate in their roles, though John Hurt as ever shines like the star that he is, and that wonderful voice he has so wonderfully enhances the narration.

One down side is that yet again, the 3D angle is a complete waste of time.....6 out of 10

"Machine Gun Preacher"

Sam Childers is not a particularly nice man. He has been imprisoned, he has little respect for his wife, is not much of a father, he drinks, does drugs, has little inclination to get a job, and has violent tendancies. Not exactly a dream catch. When out with his drug taking friend, a man is killed. Full of remorse, Sam follows his wife's example and turns to God for salvation. Sam becomes a better man, a family man, someone committed to making amends, to getting work. During a talk at their local church, they here from a Pastor who preaches in Africa, and tells the congregation of the plight of the people of Sudan. Sam wants to visit Africa, to see if he can help, put his building skills to good use.
He gets to see first hand the death and destruction caused by the locals rebels on the people of Sudan. Seeing nowhere for these people to sleep at night, his aim is to build an orphanage, a refuge for them to take shelter.
The rebels don't take kindly to this white man interferring with the affairs of their country. The white man stands strong against the might of the rebels, at considerable cost. His family start to feel neglected with his spending more time in Sudan than with them, and he is draining their ever decreasing finances to fund his work with the Orphanage.

It is a truly remarkable story, and unfortunately for the people of Sudan, the horrors inflicted upon them continue today. It is the ultimate story of bad man turned good. But although you may think it is Sam's story, it is about the People of Sudan. Words cannot adequately describe what they continue to go through. It is at times a harrowing film, and very moving, one feels so helpless watching it.
The film is brilliantly directed by Marc Forster, who again shows what a master craftsman he is, following in the likes of "Monsters Ball" and "The Kite Runner", and really making up for the travesty that was "Quantum of Solace".
Gerard Butler gives an amazing performance as Sam Childers, it shows a different side to his acting skills, taking a step back from those action packed roles we are used to seeing him in.

There are many slogans used for the advertising of this film, to say how brilliant it is, believe every single word....they are true......9 out of 10

"The Help"

Life has never been easy for African Americans, especially during the 1960's, the setting for this movie. Skeeter is a young woman, desperate to break into journalism, and gets a job on a local paper. Her social calendar consists of attending little intimate events by the lady folk of their fair town, with the helping hand coming from the maid. In every case the African American maid is the lynch pin for every household. Indeed Skeeter herself was as good as raised by their maid, seeing very little of her Mother.
Segregation is rife still, and looks to get worse, with a new Bill looking to be passed in Congress which would mean seperate toilets. And for Skeeter, this is one stop too far.  She decides to write a book, detailing the lifes of these African American maids, what they have to endure, the families they work for. At first the maids are reluctant to come forward and tell their story, for fear of repercussions. But soon the tide starts to turn.

The story is beautifully told, mostly through the eyes of two maids in particular, Aibileen and Minny. They not only have to deal with being treated as second rate citizens, but also with hard-ships within their own households. There are great performances all round, from a predominantly female cast, and boy do they shine.

With a running time of almost two and a half hours, it may seem a little long, but rest assured the time just flies by.

Great story, great acting,great film........8 out of 10

"Contagion"

The stars certainly came out for this one.
Normally any of the main stars of this film can carry a picture by themselves, but here they are together for Director Steven Soderbergh, with enough Oscars between them to almost fill the Shrine Auditorium.

The film is concerned with the latest virus epidemic which is sweeping across the US, and indeed the rest of the World. The film concerns itself with the plight of certain individuals, the Father who has lost his wife and son, and struggles to survive along with his daughter. There are two Physicians battling to find a cure for the disease. The Blogger who believes in telling the truth about the disease and the alledged billions being made by Companies, and the cover-up over the spread of the virus. It is these stories that give the film its humanity, and those stories are well told.

Soderbergh is adequate in the Director's chair, but has done far better work. Of the actors, Matt Damon is the star that shines brightest, as he usually does.

Well I first heard about this virus thriller from Warner Bros. I immediately thought back to their last effort, the thriller "Outbreak", and if one is to do a comparison, then for me "Outbreak" is far in front. What was most chilling was the simplicity of what caused the virus, and how quickly it took effect.

The shape of things to come?????............6 out of 10

"Anonymous"

There is alot of chatter amongst writers, actors, Directors and the likes of as to whether William Shakespeare wrote all those classic tales himself, or whether he "acquired them" and passed them off as his own. This film looks at that very debate.

Getting your work onto the stage during the reign of Queen Elizabeth was not an easy task. And it can be more difficult if you are part of the titled gentry, just like the Earl of Oxford. Such is the high quality of his writing, yet he cannot publish it under his own name, so allows a theatrical acquaintance to do so. But along the way, the waters become muddy, and the person who ends up claiming to have written these works is one William Shakespeare, despite the fact that he is illiterate.

The rightful ownership of "Macbeth" and "Romeo & Juliet" is just half of the story, with the other half dealing with the fight for the throne, as Queen Elizabeth comes ever closer to her death-bed, there are those who believe that James of Scotland should be King.
Despite wanting to see the struggle about Shakespeare and his works on screen, the Monarchy fight does seem to dominate, which was disappointing.
And for some bizarre reason, whenever Shakespeare is on screen, it seems to be purely for comic relief, and I am afraid to say that Rafe Spall gives the worst portrayal of William Shakpespeare I have ever seen.
Rhys Ifans is excellent as The Earl of Oxford, as is Vanessa Redgrave as Queen Elizabeth. And one never needs an excuse to see Sir Derek Jacobi on the big screen.
It is quite a departure for Director Roland Emmerich, who is normally associated with big blockbusters and films depicting the end of the world.

Not bad, but could have been greatly improved.........5 out of 10

"The Rocky Horror Picture Show"

Having never seen this classic before, what better way to commemorate Halloween than a screening at the flickers of this camp classic.

One had an idea of what to expect, but was not sure how it would go down.
'Dr. Frank N Furter' is creating is own idea of man, for his enjoyment. During the proceedings, along come Brad and Janet, two stranded motorists, seeking refuge. They certainly get more than they bargained for in this re-working of the classic Frankenstein story, with more make-up and lip gloss than on sale at Boots Chemist.
The songs come thick and fast, and are wonderfully funny. One cannot help but smile when you hear the first few beats of 'The Timewarp'.
It has a unique kind of humour, and it works so wonderfully well, with just the best performances, especially from marvellous Tim Curry as 'Dr. Frank N Furter', and boy does he look good in that glorious creation of a costume.

Richard O'Brien is a genius for his creation of the show, and working on the film. It still brilliantly stands the test of time.
For me the show is almost stolen by Charles Gray, I doubt I will ever be able to take "Diamonds are Forever" seriously again, all I will be waiting for is for 'Blofeld' to take a step to the left, then the right and put his hands on his hips etc.

Mad, camp, crazy and addictively funny.......8 out of 10

"The Ides of March"

The political drama is back, and on top form. 
Governor Mike Morris is running for President, and along side him is his trusty team. One of those being staff member Stephen Meyers. Very idealistic and committed to the cause, and getting his boss into The White House. He becomes involved with one of the interns, but to save any embarrassment, in other words, he does not want his colleagues to know about her, he refers to her as 'the cleaning lady' when asked who is in his room. This becomes quite a joke for them, until it is apparent that she has been 'cleaning' for the Governor also.
Meyers is also approached by Tom Duffy, the Campaign Manager of the Governor's opponent. This meeting will cost Meyers dearly.

It is a compelling story told brilliantly in the 100 minute running time. Clooney excels both in the Director's chair, and also as the charasmatic Governor. The film boasts an all star cast, all delivering top notch performances, the best of which comes from Ryan Gosling, who can do no wrong, his films are coming thick and fast, and each as good as the other, though I have yet to see "Crazy Stupid Love". Certainly the man of the moment.

There are plenty of twists and turns, and more than a fair share of back-stabbing. Great story, fantastic cast, what more could you want?    8 out of 10

"The Three Musketeers"

Well it was never going  to demand much of the brain was it?  I did expect to really not like this movie, but as is often the case, the film industry can surprise you. It is the same old story of The Musketeers are in decline, and barely in use these days. Off to make his fortune and join in is young D'Artagnan. Richelieu is plotting some dastardly scheme, along with the help of Lord Buckingham. And then it all kicks off in a wonderful romp.

It is one of those movies that if you leave your brain in the foyer and just go along for the ride, then you will find it as entertaining as this viewer. There are some great moments, wonderful set pieces, the sets and costumes are amazing, there is some nice light relief, quite a bit is courtesy of James Corden, who I did not know was in the film.

With all the ships flying around, and a score similar in nature, it has a feel more like "Pirates of the Caribbean", and certainly more like what "Pirates" should have been like, especially the awful "On Stranger Tides".

The cast are all good fun, the three leads are are decent enough, and Logan Lerman is ok as the young addition to the group. Special mention  to Christoph Waltz hamming it up wonderfully, and Mads Mikkelsen doing villainry as only he can.

The film is geared for a sequel, but given the lack of money taken at the Box office, and the lead actress slamming Summit Entertainment for their lack of publicising the film, don't expect the second movie anytime soon, if indeed at all. Shame really.

All for one.........6 out of 10