Topic: Never Ending Movie Marathon (short reviews)

[Dragonfire]

There has been too much emphasis on the special effects at the expense of story in too many movies recently.

[DSig]

Really .. humm .. I thought that the special effects (what there were of them) were pretty tame.

I do agree that it can get really over the top.  Case in point is the new "Total Recall". 

But the Hunger Games trilogy has an interesting story.  I think they were just too afraid to do the first one right in case it didn't pay back well.

[kahless]

[...]  Case in point is the new "Total Recall".  [...]

Good point. I have just seen this remake of "Total Recall". If I ignore the original movie, I think it's is ok. Good action movie - just a no-brainer!

[Dragonfire]

I wasn't too bothered by the effects in Hunger Games.  Though I do think some things could have been handled a bit better.

[samuelrichardscott]

Home Alone (1990)

Overview:
When Kevin's family left for vacation, they forgot one minor detail: Kevin! Eight-year-old Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) has become the man of the house, overnight.
Accidentally left behind when his family rushes off on a Christmas vacation, Kevin gets busy decorating the house for the holidays. But he's not decking the halls with tinsel and holly. Two bumbling burglars are trying to break in, and Kevin's rigging a bewildering battery of booby traps to welcome them!
Written and produced by John Hughes, this madcap slapstick adventure features an all-star supporting cast including Catherine O'Hara and John Heard as Kevin's parents, Joe Pesci and Daniel Stem as the burglars, and John Candy as the "Polka King of the Midwest".

My Thoughts:
Pros:
- I was seven when this came out and it has held up incredibly well.
- Daniel Stern and Joe Pesci are both great fun as the burglars who find out the meaning of pain.
- So inventive with the way the traps are set-up.
- So many quotable scenes. "This is my home... I have to protect it!".
Cons:
- John Candy is underused.
- Some of the siblings could've been better cast despite their minor roles.
Overall:
- A cracking comedy for Christmas. 4/5

[samuelrichardscott]

Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)

Overview:
Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) gets separated from his family at Christmas time again. This time, they're in Florida and he's in New York, and the two bumbling gangsters from 'Home Alone' (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern) are out of jail and on Kevin's trail.

My Thoughts:
Pros:
- Like the first, has held up very well and it was great to see all the cast come back.
- This time Catherine O'Hara gets a bit of a bigger role.
- Tim Curry. His entire role and all his scenes in the hotel are among the best.
Cons:
- A bit too similar in the physical comedy aspect.
- Some of the scenes with the pigeon woman are a little overlong.
Overall:
Recommended. 3.5/5

[samuelrichardscott]

Man of the House (2005)

Overview:
Comedy starring Tommy Lee Jones. Hard-edged Texas Ranger Roland Sharp (Jones) is assigned to protect the only witnesses to the murder of a key figure in the prosecution of a drug kingpin - a group of University of Texas cheerleaders. Sharp must now go undercover as an assistant cheerleading coach and move in with the young women - possibly the most terrifying assignment in his thirty-year career in law enforcement.

My Thoughts:
Pros:
- This is a good change of pace for Tommy Lee Jones. His sort of character obviously, but the comedic touch did suit him.
- The cheerleaders include Vanessa Ferlito and Paula Garces who were in fave TV shows of mine (CSI: NY and The Shield).
Cons:
- Cedric the Entertainer. Won't somebody stop him?
- Nothing new and very generic.
Overall:
Rent it. 3/5

[samuelrichardscott]

21 (2008)

Overview:
Slick casino scam tale based on Ben Mezrich's book 'Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions'. Brilliant M.I.T. student Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess) has got money worries, if he doesn't come up with $300,000 he's going to be kicked out. Luckily for Ben, help is at hand in the shape of maths professor Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey), who has formed a team of students capable of taking on the casinos of Las Vegas and beating them at blackjack, using a technique known as card counting. But as the team start to win, and win big, the glitzy lifestyle soon starts to ensnare Ben, and he begins to believe he's untouchable. With the team attracting the attention of casino security chief Cole Williams (Laurence Fishburne), it's not long before the stakes are raised to dangerous levels.

My Thoughts:
Pros:
- Kevin Spacey, Laurence Fishburne, Jim Sturgess and Kate Bosworth all work well together and are all very believable in their roles.
- The film manages to explain card counting and the scam without too much simplification and dumbing down.
- The twist is fun, and although you think it is possibly obvious it still had an element of surprise.
Cons:
- I'd have liked to have seen more from the other members of the 'team', especially in the way of character development.
- Sometimes the narration dialogue didn't quite fit.
Overall:
If you enjoy casino movies, I recommend adding this to your collection. 3.5/5

[samuelrichardscott]

Point Break (1991)

Overview:
Young FBI agent Utah (Keanu Reeves) must track down a four-man bank robbery team who wear masks depicting the features of ex-US Presidents Reagan, Carter, Nixon and Johnson. Suspecting them to be surfers, the agent sets about infiltrating the surfing community, and becomes a little too close to the adrenalin junkies to be objective. With Patrick Swayze as the main suspect, and Gary Busey as Utah's more experienced partner.

My Thoughts:
Pros:
- The action scenes and set pieces are well shot and exciting.
- The pacing is very good and there is just the right mix of action/storyline.
- Patrick Swayze, Gary Busey, John C. McGinley and Keanu Reeves are all very good - Busey especially.
Cons:
- Lori Petty wasn't very well cast. She just didn't feel like a surfer character.
Overall:
A cracking undercover cop movie. Recommended. 4/5

[samuelrichardscott]

Home Alone 3 (1997)

Overview:
A band of hi-tech thieves have stolen a top-secret computer chip, and placed it inside a toy car. However, through a series of mishaps the car finds its way to Alex Pruitt (Alex D. Linz), who is alone at home with the chicken pox. The thieves track Alex down, but their attempts to retrieve the chip are all thwarted by the young whiz-kid.

My Thoughts:
After watching the first two Home Alone movies the other day I thought I would catch the third in the series as it was on television. Unfortunately, whilst it has obvious similarities to the very enjoyable Culkin films, Alex D Linz is missing that spark. The cast is generally below par and the only real notable appearance is a small one from a young Scarlett Johansson. The interaction between Alex and the band of criminals is nowhere near as funny or inventive as the previous movies and the general storyline not as enjoyable. This isn't a complete waste of time, but it just wasn't for me. Skip it. 2/5

[samuelrichardscott]

The Girl (2012)

Overview:
Alfred Hitchcock was at the height of his fame and creativity when, in 1962, he chose an unknown fashion model to star in his most ambitious film - The Birds. But as he sculpted Tippi Hedren into the perfect Hitchcock blonde of his imagination, he became obsessed with the impossible dream of winning the real woman s love. Their mutual desires- hers for fame, his for fantasy- would all but destroy both of their careers in what would become a passionate and destructive struggle for survival. Screenwriter Gwyneth Hughes has interviewed Tippi Hedren, and surviving members of Hitchcock s crew. This film tells their full tragic story for the first time. Starring Toby Jones (Harry Potter, Titanic, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) and Sienna Miller (Layer Cake, Alfie, Factory Girl), supported by Imelda Staunton (Harry Potter, Vera Drake) and Penelope Wilton (Downton Abbey). Directed by Julian Jarrold (Appropriate Adult).

My Thoughts:
Oh god, what a disappointment. This had been promoted by the BBC for weeks in the run up to it being shown and I was very excited to finally watch it a week after it had aired. Toby Jones is absolutely brilliant as Hitchcock and Sienna Miller so-so as Tippi Hendren but this 'factual' movie is very one sided and never really gets past Hitchcock being a bit of sex pest and a bully. There is no denial that Hitchcock had stalkerish ways and was a bit crazy, but I would've hoped this would not be a film based solely on unsubstantiated viewpoints of Tippi Hendren when she was in her eighties - viewpoints that nobody else has come forward and said they had seen, despite much of it happening on crowded film sets. Whilst I am sure there are some truths in this, it just makes Hedren come across as a victim who can do no wrong, pissed that her career never took off after The Birds and Marnie. Such a shame as I think with research into both sides would've made a world of difference. Skip it. 2/5

[samuelrichardscott]

Animal Kingdom (2010)

Overview:
Following the death of his mother, 17-year–old Joshua 'J' Cody (James Frecheville) moves in with his hitherto–estranged family, under the watchful eye of his doting grandmother, Janine 'Smurf' Cody (Jacki Weaver), and her three criminal sons--the Cody boys. Eldest son and armed robber, Andrew 'Pope' Cody (Ben Mendelsohn) is in hiding from a gang of renegade detectives. Middle brother Craig (Sullivan Stapleton) is a successful but volatile drug dealer, whilst the youngest Cody, Darren (Luke Ford), naïvely follows his elder brothers' lead. Just as Pope's business partner and best friend, Barry Brown (Joel Edgerton), decides that he wants out of the game, recognising that their days of old–school banditry are all but over, tensions between the family and the police explode. J finds himself at the centre of a cold–blooded revenge plot that turns his family upside down and which throws him directly into the path of senior homicide detective, Nathan Leckie (Guy Pearce).
Writer and director David Michôd’s brutal and captivating depiction of Melbourne’s criminal underbelly heralds the arrival of an intense new voice to contemporary Australian Cinema.

My Thoughts:
Pros:
- The cast, especially Ben Mendelsohn and Jacki Weaver.
- The character Janine Cody who comes across as nice but will go to any lengths in order to protect certain people.
- It doesn't glamourise the violence, making the situations feel very tense.
Cons:
- It did feel overlong in some parts - mainly due to the monotony of some of the situations.
- Sometimes J's lack of emotion annoyed me, especially at the beginning with the paramedics and his mother overdosing.
Overall:
Another very good crime movie from Australia. Recommended. 3.5/5

[samuelrichardscott]

Ill Manors (2012)

Overview:
We are all products of our environment. Some environments are just harder to survive in. Welcome to London, 2012. Home of the Olympic Games. Behind the veil of newly injected prosperity lies a community that's impossible to enter and even harder to escape. After 15 years in prison ex-dealer Kirby wants three simple things; to take back his turf, to get laid and to take revenge on the gangsters who have disrespected him. But a humiliating run-in with his former protégé sparks a chain of violence, vengeance and lethal reprisals that ripple through the community of drug dealers pimps, and innocents all swept up into the cycle of violence and deception. Then there is Aaron, street-wise yet vulnerable, just trying to get by and do the right thing while his ruthless friend Ed will stop at nothing to reclaim a mobile phone leading to deadly consequences. The highly anticipated feature length debut of award-winning musician Plan B (aka Ben Drew) iLL MANORS is an explosive unique crime thriller. Narratively linked through original music from Plan B himself, the film is a groundbreaking, visually stunning and gripping experience, laced with street-wise humour.

My Thoughts:
For those who do not know who Ben Drew is, he is better known as the British music sensation Plan B. Personally, I'm not a fan of his music so went into this one with a little scepticism, especially as he not only provides the music, but he also wrote and directed the movie and gave himself a little cameo. Well call me surprised, because with a budget of just £100,000 he has made a very good directorial debut. The feel of the movie and the plot owe to the success of Noel Clarke's movies such as Kidulthood and 4.3.2.1 but still manages to stand on its own two feet. The circumstances around the characters are well developed, the storylines intertwine very well and the music is perfect throughout. If you're a fan of Kidulthood, I can easily recommend this. 4/5

[samuelrichardscott]

Higher Learning (1995)

Overview:
John Singleton directs this tale of three students who each find a very different path through college: an athlete (Omar Epps) struggling to make the grade; a naive girl (Kristy Swanson) who discovers that men cannot always accept 'no' for an answer; and a shy and retiring guy (Michael Rapaport) who joins a gang of neo-Nazi skinheads in a desperate search for companionship.

My Thoughts:
Pros:
- Such a great cast. Omar Epps, Tyra Banks, Jennifer Connelly, Kristy Swanson, Laurence Fishburne, Ice Cube, Michael Rapaport, Cole Hauser, Regina King to name just a few.
- The lives of the students all intertwine well with enough time spent on each of the characters for development.
- John Singleton did well to look at sexism and sexuality as well as racism.
Cons:
- Stereotypes were overdone when it came to characteristics at times and whilst it did look at racism from blacks againts whites, it was certainly leaning heavily towards injustices and how 'hard done by' the black students were.
Overall:
Recommended. 4/5

[samuelrichardscott]

Land of the Dead (2005)

Overview:
With the living dead having now taken over much of the world, the few survivors left have retreated to a fortified city, where the rich live in penthouse apartments while the poor suffer on the streets below. Governed by the corrupt Kaufman (Dennis Hopper), the city comes under threat when the impoverished population begin to demand a change in leadership and it becomes obvious that the army of zombies outside the city walls is beginning to adapt to its surroundings.

My Thoughts:
Yes, this is weak compared to the previous ### of the Dead movies but IMO, it is also unfairly crapped on. There is plenty to enjoy here, from the overall idea of everyone being holed up in the one city through to the special effects and the way that the zombies have been able to team together and have learned several basic things to enable them to reach the outskirts of the city. The cast is also generally good, in particular Asia Argento and Dennis Hopper although John Leguizimo is easily the weak link here. Unfortunately there are also some downsides to Land of the Dead. The movie isn't very original and you could pretty much guess everything as it is about to happen and some the dialogue doesn't fit. Overall, this is a rental or cheap purchase. 3/5