Review #17 - Dark Shadows

         Dark Shadows was a film I went to expecting it to be brilliant and not be able to find a single flaw in it, unfortunately there were a few things that caught my attention though so I thought I’d get them out the way and end the review on a positive note. We see early on that a key component of Barnibus Collins’ character is a lesson his father taught him early on about the importance of family yet I felt that the film focussed more on the problems surrounding the family business than the family’s dysfunctional relationships. With a mother and daughter constantly fighting, a young boy striving for his father’s attention and misunderstood by the rest of the family except a new and mysterious governess there was a lot of broken relationships to be fixed. I thought that Barnibus would be restoring the family as well as their wealth, and although he does help them in many ways, I felt that this side of things was not explored as thoroughly as it could have been. But then again with a curse, a business falling to ruins and Barnibus’ complicated love life, the plot was so full to the brim that it is no surprise that some aspects fell to the way side!

     Another unsatisfactory part of the film was the ending. Without giving too much away I hope, there were aspects that kind of felt thrown in at the last minute and didn't seem to serve a majorly important purpose. Also I felt that nothing had really been accomplished by the end, the Collins ended up in pretty much the same situation as they started in, if not worse! Generally the final scenes did not seem as well constructed as the rest of the film and I found myself waiting behind at the credits hoping some other funny scene would appear revealing what happens next, but alas no scene came. My only other minor complaint is that many of the best scenes were used in the trailer but then again that is a common occurrence these days.

   Ok on to the good things! Firstly any fans of Johnny Depp will love his brilliant performance. His love of strange and eccentric characters shines through and I loved every minute he was on screen! I particularly liked his archaic twist on modern phrases, wish I could remember some of my favourites to share with you but I’ll let you listen out for them yourselves. All the actors were great and I especially liked the husky voiced witch, Eva Green, she played the part perfectly.

   It was a really funny film and I thought the way jolly 70’s music was juxtaposed with some of the scenes was excellent and made them all the more amusing! This film was a bit of a disappointment, it could have been so much more but that doesn’t take away the fact that it is an entertaining film. It does have several criticisms but overall I enjoyed watching this film and would do so again, perhaps my only recommendation for this film is to lower your expectations and not to judge it solely on the reputation of it’s director.

Review #16 - The Lucky One

   The Lucky One is a sweet, feel good film. Logan (Zac Efron), a marine who after finding a picture of a beautiful woman while in Iraq, avoids several disasters while others weren't so lucky. Believing the photo to be a good luck charm on his return from the war he sets out to find the woman and thank her for the photo that provided his safety and return a treasured token that she had sent for a loved one. However when he meets Beth (Taylor Schilling) he is unable to find the words to explain and instead starts working for her and her Grandmother at their dog kennel. Inevitably the two begin to fall in love, healing each others scars and finally finding happiness with each other.
    The romantic dawn and dusk lighting used almost constantly throughout the film, envelopes it in a rosy haze. At times it seems a little over done but also quite accurately sets the tone for the film. All the characters, particularly Beth and Logan are extremely likeable and right from the beginning you find yourself rooting for them all to find happiness. I liked that the obstacle keeping them apart was not a deceased war hero husband or even a current love interest but a controlling ex. Keith Clayton (Jay R. Ferguson-the ex) is a well rounded character with enough flaws that the audience dislikes him but also occasionally showing a more compassionate side making him more interesting and three dimensional. There was also some good acting from Riley Thomas Stewart as Beth's son Ben, who at ten years old has already appeared in 11 titles!

    Joey, thought the romantic scenes dragged out a bit but was interested in the story; He described it as a film he might have on in the background while doing something else or one to watch with friends. I would describe it as a nice chill out film to watch on a weekend. It's a DVD I might pick up cheap in a sale. It's an enjoyable film to watch but I wouldn't insist you run out to the cinema straight away. The plot was engaging and it was a sweet storyline about fate, love and finding peace within yourself. Simple but lovely - a 3* Film.

Review #15 - The Grey (2011)

First of all a huge sorry for the delay in the review – other commitments and laziness took over.

 To jump right into the review The Grey is a film for any fan of Liam Neeson. The hype of Neeson kicking some wolf ass was too much to handle and the internet was flooded with Neeson related articles, posts and tweets.
 Neeson’s acting in The Grey left him to be this man who needed help and as an audience the power of his acting grabs you and throws you into feeling sorry for him and hoping he survives the horrendous situation.
 In particular the monologues through the film with Neeson worked really well showing that even the strongest of men, leaders, have the moments they need reassurance and support. As an example *spoiler* there is a scene towards the end of the film where he questions his beliefs and calls for God to help him but it is quickly turned around with Neeson realising this isn’t going to work and so ends the monologue with “fuck  it, I’ll do it myself”. *end spoiler* Even in the most action packed films humour can lighten up the mood and not one person would of ignored that bit of comedy.

 Another key part which stood out to both me and Jess was the transitions between Neeson and his dreams. When he would sleep and rest he had dreams – as people do – however the way he came out of these dream states were fantastic. As an example *spoiler* when the plane crashes Neeson was in a dream state and as the plane crashed so did the dream with his wife, who was laying by him, being pulled away at force which opens the next scene of disaster. *end spoiler*.

However where Neeson was the leading role in the film and the hype revolved around him many of the support roles and other actors did really well at building the tension and situations with Neeson. The actors all fell into their roles perfectly allowing them to really show the madness and questionability in the situation they were in. Credit to them for their roles – check imdb for who played the characters.

A note for the cinema experience that combined with the film itself is the fact that the sheer volume and feel to the room was perfect. During the plane crash scene the sound was LOUD it felt as it you were part of the crash and that would be a fraction of the sound they would hear. Really pulling you into the story right when the situation turns bad. As an added bonus the film is set in the snowy wastes of Canada the cineworld room was cold, which in a normal film would of been bad but this gave the film that frosted coating that it deserved.

Both myself and Jess could not come to any bad points about this film but if you managed to form a different opinion then comment below and tell us what you thought!

Over all I would rate this a 5* film and would recommended it to any Neeson fans.

Review #14 - Avenger's Assemble

  Take one eccentric billionaire, a God from another world, drop in a recently defrosted super soldier, mix with a volatile rage monster and drop in a couple of master spies and you’ve got the greatest super hero team the world has ever seen. You’ve got The Avengers.

    I had been looking forward to this film for a long time so, like many others, I had a lot of expectations riding on the Avengers Assemble, and I was not disappointed. Having Joss Whedon as the director and writer of this film, I believe, is key to its success. The classic Joss Whedon wit he injected into the script had the whole cinema in fits of laughter. He manages to bring this team together without making any of the hero’s the main focus, giving each character their chance in the spotlight.

     I thought the way that the characters were brought together, some being enlisted, others like Thor choosing to join forces was more interesting and engaging than if everyone had come together mutually. Their differences were an integral part of the plot and made the team stronger in the end. Yet from the beginning Whedon hints at how the heroes will come together later on, the fight on the plane pairs the hero’s up with those that are equally matched e.g. the hulk has the strength of a god and would crush any of the human opponents so takes on Thor. Iron man in his suit is equivalent to a super strong human – Captain America and the two assassins share a similar skill set. And what could be better from a superhero movie than watching the characters flex their muscles and give us a taste of their destructive powers even if it is on each other?  

        The audience is also given a taste of Loki’s power too when he taunts the Avengers out into the open. Now personally I don’t think Loki is a particularly terrifying villain. He is ruthless and his obsession with power and anarchy is typical of any villain but underneath he is simply a petulant child still snivelling about living his life in his brother’s shadow. He strikes me as the kind of weak character who craves power but wouldn’t know what to do with it if he did actually grasp it. However saying this he does look rather impressive when he strolls down the sweeping staircase and swiftly grabs his victim throwing him easily down on a plinth like a sacrificial lamb and mutilating him. All this is given a menacing tone with the accompanying music that builds and changes in tone as Loki enters the room, giving it an almost operatic theme. Loki may not always appear as the most formidable enemy but he is a good stepping stone for the Avenger’s to test themselves before moving on to bigger and better enemies as is hinted at the end of the film after the credits. A short scene, cleverly placed after the credits so that some of the audience will see but some won’t, reveals a new enemy and promises a sequel to the Avenger’s Assemble.

    The only other part of this film I questioned was the Hulk’s ability to control his temper. In the beginning it seems that he has better control over changing into his other half, although no one else seems convinced of his control. Then suddenly he loses it and seems completely unstoppable, even knocking Black Widow to one side like a bug. Yet when it comes to the climactic final fight Dr Banner seems to be able to choose when he changes and remain controlled only lashing out (mostly) at Loki’s evil army. My only speculation is that Dr Banner has more control when he chooses to change than when he changes without will. I thought it was interesting how Dr Banner bonds with Stark showing that the characters join up not just over similar physical and fighting abilities but also mental ones.

   Another interesting character development was watching Captain America; throughout the film he came off as being a little out of sorts. The mix of him being behind the times and mixing with characters who held much stronger powers than his own, some that Stark points out were genetic rather than manufactured as Captain America’s powers were, makes him a little underwhelming. However his chance to shine comes during the final battle when he reveals himself as a strong leader, taking charge and really living up to his name just when the Avenger’s (and police) need instruction the most. His development throughout the film made him an interesting character to follow.

    Other than the many comical scenes that I believe have a huge part in making this film such a success, there were a few others worth looking out for. For example when Black Widow is interrogating Loki whose reflection appears next to her looking warped and evil. It was a subtle but highly effective technique. Similarly when the Avenger’s and Dr Fury get into a massive argument, squabbling amongst each other and far from the awesome team they will become, the camera slowly turns to show how upside down the situation has gone from what Dr Fury hoped for from the Avenger’s initiative. All the while Loki’s sceptre is kept in the foreground, framing the scene and reminding the audience that this is all part of Loki’s plan. Joey picked up how the scenes linked together such as (SPOILER ALERT) after Phil’s death, even though he doesn’t know it, Thor stops himself from calling his hammer to him and instead reaches down to grasp it, a humbling and respectful gesture. I also particularly liked the seamless movement from character to character during the final battle, showing how the team has finally come together to work as one force against evil.

      Over all this film is amazing! Definitely worth seeing and both Joey and I agreed that it made us want to buy/re-watch all the connecting Marvel movies. It was funny, action packed and evolved; it definitely reached expectations, perhaps even surpassed them. I would rate the Avenger’s Assemble a 4.5 stars and eagerly await a sequel. If you haven’t seen it yet there’s still time! Get to your cinema quick! And if you have seen it, trust me it’s even better second time round!