Topic: Riches Random Reviews

[richierich]

P.S. I Love You



Holly Kennedy (Hilary Swank) is beautiful, smart and married to the love of her life - a passionate, funny and impetuous Irishman named Gerry (Gerard Butler). So when Gerry's life is taken by an illness, it takes the life out of Holly. The only one who can help her is the person who is no longer there. Nobody knows Holly better than Gerry. So it's a good thing he planned ahead!

Before he died, Gerry wrote Holly a series of letters that will guide her, not only through her grief but in rediscovering herself. The first message arrives on Holly's 30th birthday in the form of a cake, and to her utter shock, a tape recording from Gerry, who proceeds to order her to 'get out and celebrate herself!' In the weeks and months that follow, more letters from Gerry are delivered, each sending her on a new adventure and each signing off in the same way: P.S. I Love You!

Above average chickflick, an engaging cast and touching storyline keeps the film of interest and ahead of the typicaly gooey titles from this rom-com genre. Apparently it is a mile away from the original novel, which was set solely in Dublin, but fortunately I hadn't read it so this hasn't spoiled it for me.
Hilary Swank is unusually convincing in her lead role, and the chemistry with all the main cast works well. It is of course very sentimental and thought provoking, and will make you consider your own circumstances for a nano-second.
Did I cry watching this - of course not - but my partner did boo and thus directs you to the perfect target audience for the movie, and guaranteed to give all fellas brownie points if they sit through this with their better halfs.
 

[Tom]

Unleashed

 

I have had this one on my unwatched pile for quite some time. Seems like I should watch it soon.

[richierich]

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button



"I was born under unusual circumstances . . ."
Thus begins The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, the Academy Award®-winning film starring Brad Pitt as a man who is born in his eighties and ages backward, and Cate Blanchett as the woman he is destined to love forever. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a monumental journey - as unusual as it is epic - that follows Benjamin's remarkable adventure of romance and redemption from the end of World War I through the 21st Century. Winner of three Academy Awards , The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is "one of the best movies of the decade!" (Karen Durbin, Elle)

Interesting production with very novel storyline, it is over-hyped, overly long and surprisingly well acclaimed critically, but never stretches itself from a good film to a great film. It reminded me a lot of Forrest Gump with the narrative voice-over, lead character in the middle of history, and very similar direction which was a surprise given Finchers previous movies. I believe both films have the same author?
Cate Blanchett and Brad Pitt are ideally cast, and do a good job breezing through the script. The supporting cast are also unilaterally excellent in their roles. The CGI and make-up are unbelievable and totally convincing, helping Pitt portray Benjamin at several ages.
This is traditional escapism with a simple story, a romantic drama with an unusual theme, well told and adequately acted, but for me on first viewing I did not fall overly in love with the whole picture.
 

[richierich]

The Final Countdown



The time is now. The place is aboard the U.S.S. Nimitz, America's mightiest nuclear-powered aircraft carrier on maneuvers in the Pacific Ocean. Suddenly, a freak electrical storm engulfs the ship and triggers the impossible: The Nimitz is hurtled back in time to December 6, 1941, mere hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. As the enemy fleet speeds towards Hawaii, the warship's Captain (Kirk Douglas), a Defense Department expert (Martin Sheen), a maverick Air Wing Commander (James Farentino) and a desperate Senator in the Roosevelt administration (Charles Durning) must choose between the unthinkable. Do they allow the Japanese to complete their murderous invasion or launch a massive counter-strike that will forever change the course of history?

Once described as the 'Twilight Zone on steroids' with it's larger budget, I couldn't have put it better myself.
I am much more interested in the concept than the delivery, it is a great what-if scenario and one would of hoped the film matched the potential of the idea. Sadly it was disappointing in many areas, the transition scenes are comicaly bad, I never warmed to many of the cast including Douglas, the ending is telegraphed, it has dated poorly, there are no battle scenes, and very little suspense. I would love to see this rewritten and made with todays technology and financial clout.
The outcome leaves you feeling cheated, and the film overall never met it's potential.
 

[richierich]

The Trench



THE TRENCH tells the story of a group of young British soldiers on the eve of the Battle of the Somme in the summer of 1916, the worst defeat in British military history. Against this ill-fated backdrop, the movie depicts the soldiers' experience as a mixture of boredom, fear, panic, and restlessness, confined to a trench on the front lines. At the center of the troops is 17-year-old Billy MacFarlane (Paul Nicholls), who alongside his older brother, Eddie (Tam Williams), has volunteered for service. Like their fellow squad members, they are boys dressed as men. Their survival is in the hands of war-hardened Saergeant Winter (Daniel Craig) and bookish Lieutenant Hart (Julian Rhind-Tutt). However, when word comes that the squad will join the first wave of the attack, they all face an equal fate.

Full of character cliches, cringe-worthy dialogue, totally inaccurate historical detail, embarrasingly cheap sets, this film was a mess from start to finish, and a total waste of the acting talent available. Do they believe that anyone would think the trenches before the Somme would be spotless and dry, full of clean cheery soldiers in perfect health, lolling about without any sense of imminent danger?
This is a totally unconvincing production, a major disappointment and an insult to the viewer.
 
 

[richierich]

Blade



Wesley Snipes stars as the tortured soul Blade - half man, half immortal. Blade sharpens his lethal skills under the guidiance of Whistler (Kris Kristofferson), his mentor, guardian and fellow hunter of the night. When the bloodthirsty Immortals' lord, Deacon Frost (Stephen Dorff), declares war on the human race, Blade is humanity's last hope for survival.

Rewatching the first installment as I begin a short Blade trilogy of viewings.
Kick-ass film that needs little reviewing as most have seen this movie. Extreme violence centred around an 'at-the-time' supercool Snipes, the effects are slickly top notch and there is great attention to style and detail. Forget the scriptual flaws and get immersed in the fights, especially superb through a good home cinema system that will get the blood pumping.
Top drawer vampire battling horror action movie - it is FANGtastic.
 

 

[richierich]

Blade 2



'WHEN THE WORLD IS THREATENED BY A NEW AND DEADLIER BREED OF SUPER VAMPIRE', the legendary Blade ('Wesley Snipes') and his mentor Whistler ('Kris Kristofferson') must join forces with the Bloodpack, an elite team of vampire warriors made up of his sworn enemies. In order to stop the carnage these ravenous fiends must be destroyed at all costs in this high-voltage adventure, exploding with spectacular effects and martial arts action. The electrifying Snipes reprises his role from the original cult classic, 'Blade.'

Pretty much a carry-on in style and format as the first, the quality of the fight-sequences remained as good as in the original movie, and the action continues in the in-yer-face format. Snipes as Blade again delivers the goods, Nyssa Damaskinos is an attractive female baddie, and the film is still 'cool'.
However the script is slightly weaker than the original, very little intrigue or guesswork, and on the whole drops this sequel down one level from Blade.
 

[richierich]

Blade: Trinity



Blade (Wesley Snipes) returns as the ultimate vampire hunter in the explosive third and final film, Blade: Trinity.  For years, Blade has fought against the vampires in the cover of the night. But now, after falling into the crosshairs of the FBI, he is forced out into the daylight, where he is driven to join forces with a clan of human vampire hunters he never knew existed - The Nightstalkers. Together with Abigail (Jessica Biel) and Hannibal (Ryan Reynolds), two deftly trained Nightstalkers, Blade follows a trail of blood to the ancient creature that is also hunting him, the original vampire, Dracula.

Disappointing finale to the trilogy of films, this movie fails to deliver the goods, has none of the originality of the first Blade, and does not highlight the advances in film-making, stuntwork and CGI that occured between the 2 films production dates. The acting is off the mark, especially Ryan Reynolds as the wisecracking ex-vampire who just comes across as a real prat. The whole movie reminded me of a straight to video enterprise designed to cash-in on previous success.
Poor imagery, stunted and ill fitting soundtrack, haphazard filming and characters you never care for, with a script so full of holes it could be edam, I would recommend any fans of the first 2 Blades to pretend Trinity doesn't exist.
The concept was well and truly SUCKED DRY by the end of Blade 2.
 

[DJ Doena]

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

I believe both films have the same author?

The Curious Case of Forrest Gump:
http://www.isnichwahr.de/r15811659-the-curious-case-of-forrest-gump.html

[richierich]

A View to a Kill



Agent 007 (Roger Moore) races against time to stop a power-mad industrialist (Christopher Walken) who plots to kill millions in order to corner the world’s microchip supply. From the Eiffel Tower to the top of the Golden Gate Bridge, James Bond can’t be stopped!

Unconvincing and dated plot and a tired Moore in a corset as Bond, made this outing slightly below par. There is still plenty of action and memorable excitement, the scenes around the Eiffel Tower and the opening skiing shots especially. Walken, McNee and Grace Jones are welcome additions to the 007 film series, Tanya Roberts an unmitigated disaster.
The best part of the film is of course the superb role of Alison Doody as Jenny Flex, who can forget these immortal lines on meeting Bond?;

Jenny approaches Bond wearing tight Jodhpurs outside Zorins residence...

Jenny - Good afternoon, I'm Jenny Flex
Bond - of course you are (raises eyebrow)
walks up stairs...
Bond - I expect you spend a lot of time in the saddle
Jenny - Oh I love an early morning ride
Bond - I'm an early riser myself (raises eyebrow)

Classic lines, not sure if they could get away with so easily now.

Overall though as Moores last outing, this movie does not deliver enough punch, and the storyline has proved flimsy and dated.
 

[richierich]

City Rats



Danny Dyer (The Business, Football Factory) and Tamer Hassan (The Business, Layer Cake) return to explosive form in the year's most highly anticipated Brit-flick.
Welcome to the world of the City Rats where eight lives collide in a Pulp Fiction style blend that reveals London's true dark and twisted underbelly.
Dyer and Hassan give career-best performances in their first collaboration since British gangster film The Business.

Very low budget film, and sadly poor quality given the cast involved.
It is very slow, glimpsing a dark and depressing underbelly in London society, with the expected coarse language drinks and drugs associated with Danny Dyer.
There is a sense of intrigue to last the course as the characters lives ponderously intertwine together, but unlike Crash it wasn't worth waitng for.
Overly emotional and self-absorbent, possibly the only high point was a wonderful performance by Susan Lynch as the crippled whore.
 

[richierich]

Lonely Hearts



Based on a true story, Raymond Fernandez (Jared Leto) and Martha Beck (Salma Hayek) are two psychopaths with a passion for hot-blooded sex and cold-blooded murder. Placing ads in singles magazines, they prey on a series of rich, lonely women, whom they later swindle and kill. Leaving a trail of bodies that stretches from New York to Michigan, Raymond and Martha believe they're literally getting away with murder, until homicide detectives Elmer C. Robinson (John Travolta) and Charles Hildebrandt (James Gandolfini) pick up their trail. Co-starring Laura Dern, Scott Caan and Alice Krige.

Gritty fact based crime drama, with a stand-out performance by Salma Hayek as the psychotic lover. The pace isn't electric, but surely it mirrors the true story and as such any further editing would have left out key elements.
The period settings were convincing, and the cast all deliver excellent performances. I will look out for the Honeymoon Killers now, to compare that portrayal of the Lonely Hearts killers against this film.
 

[richierich]

The Vanishing



In this riveting, tension-filled psychological thriller, a young woman (SANDRA BULLOCK) mysteriously disappears, sending her boyfriend Jeff (KIEFER SUTHERLAND) on a years-long quest to find her. Not even a new love (NANCY TRAVIS) can keep him from his obsessive search. All the while, the calculating psychopath (JEFF BRIDGES) who kidnapped his girlfriend stalks Jeff, ultimately taking him through the exact same steps that led to the crime. In order to find out what really happened, Jeff must put his own life in the hands of this devious stranger.

Psycho-thriller pulled from average status by some top-notch acting from leads Sutherland and Bridges. Never seen the original but may have to invest in that now.
I was never sure of the motive of the killer, why he did the original kidnap and then years later the obsession with the victims husband? Bridges was eerie and original in the role, but what was the thinking behind the accent and slow talking, which was accentuated through the film?
Overall an enjoyably tense, jumpy, watchable thriller with a very exciting ending.
 

[richierich]

The Living Daylights



In this installment of the James Bond series, Agent 007 (Timothy Dalton) is assigned to protect a Russian defector (Maryam d'Abo) from the KGB. When the defection proves to be an elaborate ploy, Bond woos her anyway, and together they follow a trail to a crooked American arms dealer supplying weapons to Afghanistan. Dalton finally assumes the role of Bond after refusing it 16 years earlier with DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER. The film is loosely based on Ian Fleming's short story.

Dalton brought a certain charm and seriousness to Bond, but never seemed to have an edge either in action or delivering the one-liners. The opening scenes racing across Gibraltor were excellent, and the cast work well together in what must be perhaps the last 007 film shot during the cold war.
This decent spy thriller would have deserved a better mark, but was really let down by what I thought was a disappointing ending.
 

[richierich]

Green Street 2: Stand Your Ground



When the top players of the Green Street Elite are imprisoned following a deadly battle with their archenemies Milwall, every day becomes a fight for survival. On the inside, rival firms and prison guards will stop at nothing to make their lives a living hell, leaving the lads with no choice but to stand their ground and fight... So when the opportunity of early release arises, the boys will stop at nothing to beat Milwall to the punch.

This is quite possibly the worst film I have seen for some years. The original was dumb, but enjoyable with a certain element of reality and a decent cast. This supposed sequel doesn't have a single redeeming feature, the violence is pointless and unbelievable, amateurish choreography and B grade casting. The script is ridiculous and totally implausible, with a supposed shortass female prison guard the evil leader of all the wrongdoings. How did this ever get past the scripting stage, and more amazingly who ever agreed to fund it?
Shocking waste of time and money