Topic: Dave's DVD/Blu-ray Reviews

[Dragonfire]

Those are some of the very few westerns that my mother does not like.

[Achim]

Those are some of the very few westerns that my mother does not like.

Not uncommon. many people who like American Westerns have a problem with Italian ones. It usually starts with the fact that there is no real good guy(s), just guys with a different degree of bad.

[dfmorgan]

Those are some of the very few westerns that my mother does not like.

Not uncommon. many people who like American Westerns have a problem with Italian ones. It usually starts with the fact that there is no real good guy(s), just guys with a different degree of bad.

Nice point Achim, never really thought of that but it's so true

Dave

[kahless]

[...]
Not uncommon. many people who like American Westerns have a problem with Italian ones. [...]

Not to forget the German westerns from the sixties, filmed in former Yugoslavia!  

[Dragonfire]

I think my mom said one thing she doesn't like about them - at least the 3 with Eastwood - is that he doesn't talk.

[Achim]

I think my mom said one thing she doesn't like about them - at least the 3 with Eastwood - is that he doesn't talk.

But, but, but, that's the whole point.

[Dragonfire]

She calls them the ones he doesn't talk in

[dfmorgan]

2012

Year: 2009
Director: Roland Emmerich
Cast: John Cusack, Amanda Peet, Chiwetel Ejiofor
Overview: From Roland Emmerich, director of THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW and INDEPENDENCE DAY, comes the ultimate action-adventure movie, exploding with ground-breaking special effects. As the world faces a catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions, cities collapse and continents crumble. 2012 brings an end to the world and tells of the heroic struggle of the survivors. Starring John Cusack, Woody Harrelson and Danny Glover.

Watched: 1st Jul. 2010
My Thoughts: A fairly standard Roland Emmerich film. Sit down, park your brain on the side and watch the screen. If you think too much about these films then you start to wonder how Jackson Curtis (John Cusack) can hold his breath for what seem like record periods of time, why when he has to save the ship, and everyone on it, he decides that it was the appropriate time to start making up to his ex-wife.

My Rating: Overall the usual fare so a 3 as I do enjoy these

Dave

[dfmorgan]

Alice in Wonderland

Year: 2010
Director: Tim Burton
Cast: Johnny Depp, Mia Wasikowska, Helena Bonham Carter
Overview: Tumble down the rabbit hole with Alice for a fantastical adventure from Walt Disney Pictures and Tim Burton. Inviting and magical, Alice in Wonderland is an imaginative new twist on one of the most beloved stories of all time. Alice (Mia Wasikowska), now 19 years old, returns to the whimsical world she first entered as a child and embarks on a journey to discover her true destiny. This Wonderland is a world beyond your imagination and unlike anything you've seen before. The extraordinary characters you've loved come to life richer and more colorful than ever. There's the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp), the White Queen (Anne Hathaway), the Red Queen (Helena Bonham Carter), the White Rabbit (Michael Sheen) and more. A triumphant cinematic experience – Alice in Wonderland is an incredible feast for your eyes, ears and heart that will captivate audiences of all sizes.

Watched: 2nd Jul. 2010
My Thoughts: After seeing trailers etc. for this I wasn't too sure what to really expect but now after viewing I have to say I enjoyed the film. An update or sequel to the original Lewis Carroll tale using the same characters but 10 or so years older. The biggest problem I had was with Johnny Depp, the Mad Hatter, I don't know if he thinks that because the Pirates of the Caribbean series was so successful that he has to play each new character in a similar maniacal way but that is the way he has come over to me lately. At times he was speaking normally but then affected a weird sort-of-Scottish accent. Overall though I have to say I enjoyed and will watch again.

My Rating: An enjoyableish 3

Dave

[Critter]

I really couldn't enjoy most of this one, also that "dance" at the end didn't help. I really don't know what they were thinking when they put that in.

[dfmorgan]

I really couldn't enjoy most of this one, also that "dance" at the end didn't help. I really don't know what they were thinking when they put that in.

Yes that was weird, where did it come from. Maybe I need to read the books again and then watch an earlier film version, trouble is the only earlier version I have is the Disney one, and then this one. I almost made this a 2 but decided that I had enjoyed the film more than that mark would represent.

Dave

[dfmorgan]

The Book Of Eli

Year: 2010
Director: The Hughes Brothers
Cast: Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis
Overview: Eli walks alone in post-apocalyptic America. He heads west along the highway of Death on a mission he doesn't fully understand but knows he must complete. In his backpack is the last copy of a book that could become the wellspring of a revived society. Or in the wrong hands, the hammer of a despot. Denzel Washington is Eli, who keeps his blade sharp and his survival instincts sharper as his quest thrusts him into a savage wasteland... and into explosive conflict with a resourceful warlord (Gary Oldman) set on possessing the book. "We walk by faith, not by sight," quotes Eli. Under the taut direction of the Hughes Brothers (From Hell), those words hit home with unexpected meaning and power.

Watched: 3rd Jul. 2010
My Thoughts: An excellent film which I enjoyed very much. I had guessed what the book was from the overview and that was confirmed less than halfway through but the twist with the details of the book and Eli himself I didn't spot coming. Gary Oldman to me seemed to play the bad guy character very much as he did in other films, Zorg in The Fifth Element and the detective in Léon: The Professional. Denzel Washington played Eli with a laconic, laidback ease but with power when necessary. Mila Kunis I haven't seen before but she came over not too badly. The imagery with the bright sunlight and washed out backgrounds came over well especially with the subtle change at the end when Eli reached his destination. One section I wasn't too sure off was the scenes at the remote farm with Michael Gambon and Frances De La Tour, when Gary Oldman and his gang arrived it reminded me the house shootdown in Clint Eastwood's The Gauntlet.

My Rating: An excellent 4

Dave

[dfmorgan]

Collateral

Year: 2004
Director: Michael Mann
Cast: Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx, Jada Pinkett Smith
Overview: Vincent (Tom Cruise) is a cool, calculating contract killer at the top of his game.  Max (Jamie Foxx) is a hapless cabbie with big dreams and little to show for it. Now, Max has to transport Vincent on his next job – one night, five stops, five hits and a getaway. And after this fateful night, neither man will ever be the same again.  Tonight everything is changing...

"No crime film in years boasts a cooler vibe than Michael Mann's dazzling Collateral. Mann hits a new peak ... Cruise takes his game to a whole new level. Foxx fires up the screen with the power and subtlety of a born star". — Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Watched: 4th Jul. 2010
My Thoughts: An OK film. Quite enjoyable even if a tad unbelieveable in places. Everyone seemed to put in decent performances.

My Rating: An OK 3

Dave

[dfmorgan]

Duplicity

Year: 2009
Director: Tony Gilroy
Cast: Clive Owen, Julia Roberts, Tom Wilkinson, Paul Giamatti
Overview: From the writer/director of Michael Clayton, Duplicity is a smart, slick and cool espionage movie. Academy Award® winner Julia Roberts* and Clive Owen star as two sexy spies-turned-corporate operatives who attempt to pull off one of the biggest heists ever. As the stakes rise in the ultimate game of cat-and-mouse, they'll put everything on the line to remain one double-cross ahead of the rest.

Watched: 5th Jul. 2010
My Thoughts: An interesting film. I will admit to getting confused with some of the jumps from the present to their past meetings until it was cleared up. A nice concept with plenty of twists and turns to keep you thinking. Would companies go to that extreme I wondered then decided that yes, probably, if they were trying to launch that type of product or similar.

My Rating: Overall an enjoyable 3

Dave

[dfmorgan]

Eastern Promises

Year: 2007
Director: David Cronenberg
Cast: Viggo Mortensen, Naomi Watts, Armin Mueller-Stahl
Overview: After a young teenage mother dies during childbirth, midwife Anna resolves to try to trace the baby's relatives. Guided by the girl's personal diary she meets Semyon, the charming proprietor of a plush Trans-Siberian restaurant who impeccably masks his cold and brutal acts as the head of one of London's most notorious Eastern European crime families. Semyon's volatile son Kirill, who is also part of the Vory V Zakone criminal brotherhood, and the family's mysterious driver, Nikolai, soon cross her path as Anna accidentally unleashes the full fury of the Vory...

Eastern Promises reteams acclaimed director David Cronenberg with his A History of Violence leading man Viggo Mortensen.

Watched: 6th Jul. 2010
My Thoughts: An OK film. Some convenient links between the midwife Anna, Naomi Watts, and the young Eastern European girl. A neatish twist.

My Rating: An OK 3

Dave