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seen any good flicks lately?
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Good film on this weekend. Attack the Block. A great little action film, very entertaining and the stars are the people you would cross the street to avoid.
i liked it too
What a disappointment the film was, all the charactors, relationships and politics of the dystopian future portrayed in the book have been stripped away to leave a one dimensional teen "action" movie. Then by giving it a 12 certificate to target a wider school holidays audience the film becomes bland beyond belief.
The basic premise (about all you get in the film) is that in a future earth world North America is divided into twelve districts and each district has to select two children between the ages of 12 and 18 (probably bad luck for you if you're aged 12!) as a tribute, to fight in an annual televised "last man standing" contest enacted over a period of days in a sort of hunting ground. By being brave, agile, appealing and good at killing people the contestants can attract sponsorship (a bit like They Shoot Horses Don't They, without the weapons), and benefits to themselves and the districts they come from. Eventually one winner only emerges.....and that's about it as far as the filmgoes.
I'd draw comparisons between this and The Golden Compass, both being based on quality childrens fiction with strong female lead charactors. The later is far more involving, has stronger and more charactors to engage the viewer, a complex philosophical background (involving good verses evil, and ensuring that it's sequals will never get made!), a strong engrossing plotline and a memorable action set piece (featuring fighting giant ploar bears).
As regards dystopian futures better and more disturbing visions can be seen in movies like Brazil, Twelve Monkeys, Gattaca, Soylent Green and of course Blade Runner.
Anyway....tonight its The Artist, which I'm sure will tick all my boxes.
Err...just about to be distracted by "Kelly's Heroes" on ITV4.....f'cking hillarious!
madagascar 3 actually had more wit, imagination and better action sequences than most films i've seen for a while. really excellent.
have you lot been to see 'beasts of the southern wild' yet? if not, why not.
So who watches Newsnight Review then...?
not if i can help it. what are they saying?
Tom. - completely agree with you about The Hunger Games, good comparison with Northern Lights - both excellent stories with so much potential which was wasted in the film. The only thing I really liked about the HG film was the way they showed the Games Makers manipulating the arena during the Games. As much a I dislike her in everything else, I think Kirstin Stewart would have made a much better Katniss. I liked that in the books Katniss often comes across as a bit of a jerk, not a stereotypical Mary Sue saves the world and wears a pretty dress!! type character, and Kirstin Stewart gives better jerk-vibes than Jennifer Lawrence.
I saw the new Bond film yesterday, I think the franchise is back on form after Quantum of Solace. Javier Bardem was brilliant as the baddie. I've heard a lot of people comparing him to Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight Rises (there is a bit that reminds me of the Joker's disappearing pencil trick) and I can see where the comparison comes from. Instead of being a generic stock Bond baddie, you get the idea that there isn't very much seperating him and Bond at all.
I liked Daniel Craig's more human, disenchanted and realistic Bond in this one and Naomie Harris as badass Moneypenny - amazing! Also enjoyed Ben Whishaw's performance as Q - I'd forgotten how good he is, I think I'll have to rewatch Perfume this week.
I havent been to see Beasts of the southern wild yet because it is not in a cinema near me. I didnt used to think I lived in a place cut off from the modern world but...
i liked the fact that Craig's Bond is more human and disenchanted, but i disliked the fact that he isn't in any way handsome, suave, sophisticated. he is more mitchell brother than international spy.
good villain though.
bos1 - i think you should move house. this movie is that good.
Daniel Craig not handsome???? Ok, he's craggy, but he's got sex appeal in spades!!
tons of sex appeal. tons but about as handsome as mike tindall.
i don't want a mark on my james bonds. and I certainly don't want them with cauliflower ears and a crap profile.
He's a great actor, but hopelessly miscast as bond. skyfall is quite good anyway though, mainly because he is pretty much sidelined in favour of judi dench and javier bardem.
Ah, Javier Bardem - now there's a sexy actor - drool!
I watched Godzilla last night, so stupid it was hilarious!
truly terrible. the only highlight was jean reno moaning constantly about american coffee
I cracked up when did his elvis impression to the GI, it's exactly the same as mine!
I watched a half decent road movie on iplayer last night called Octane. Got about half way through then the beeb decided my broadband wasn't up to speed and it gave up on me.
And there is no download option (but there is a Download Options dropdown list 
)
"While on a late-night road trip home, a mother (Madeleine Stowe) must save her 15-year-old daughter from initiation into a bizarre cult obsessed with blood-letting and cars. (R)"
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b008fdb2/Octane/
Has anyone watched Bicycle Thieves? Saw it on DVD last night - it's a very slight story, but the emotional impact of it is huge!
Saw it at the weekend and couldn't disagree more. Way too many plot holes for my liking, it made the old Spooks TV show look realistic, which is saying something. Too many tired movie cliches (a list with every agent on it? Did they not see Mission Impossible? The bad guy is 'caught' only to escape through pre-planning? There's your Dark Knight moment right there). And when Javier Bardem appeared I thought they'd switched reels to a David Walliams sketch on Little Britain. Very disappointing.
and the ending is a bit 'home alone'.
anyway, who'd have thought ben affleck would become a really good director?
haven't seen it but is on my 'to see' list as I have seen plenty of favourable mentions
Beasts of the Southern Wild, perhaps not a film that I would move house in order to see, but it is a film that is worth travelling a long distance in a motorised bathtub across a flooded landscape. Not that I have a bathtub, or a flooded landscape.
One of these films that when it's over, it seems to only have been on for about five minutes. Definitely worth the entrance money. And probably also worth a second viewing.
hurrah. I Beasted my pop corn
Beast It!
beast the pop corn today because tomorrow, the pop corn will beast you
Went to see "Barbara" on Thursday night. It's a German film set before the fall of the Berlin Wall, and is possibly one of the slowest films I have ever seen, which is the reason, I suppose, why a couple of people left midway! Having said that, the atmosphere and cinematography is great.
The obvious comparisons that spring to mind are with "Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf" and "Abigail's Party", though that doesn't quite do it justice, though the revelations and the vitriol of the conversations are similar in nature to Burton and Taylor in full flow, whilst some of the middle class attitudes are as cringe worthy as those in "Abigail's Party". Carnage, like these films is very very funny, but the humour derives from the attitudes and shifting relations between the four charactors rather than the wit of the script.
Dave (Kline) is an American president lookalike, who as a result of a series of quirks of fate ends up doing the job for real. As with such movies he makes a much better fist of the job than the incumbent. It's full of "Hollywood" moments - feel good stuff and doing the right thing designed to make you engage with how American politics should be. Of course we know the world isn't like that, but it's still an enjoyable experience anyway.
It's a worthwhile take on Aaron Sorkin's West Wing and his ""pilot" for that, "The American President". It doesn't break any new ground, but it's still enjoyable nevertheless, and it's designed to get you voting Democrat.
This is followed up by another American feel good movie "Doc Hollywood" a paeon to small town American, a place that never really existed but is emotive enough to pursuade you that it really did.
Both movies are rather "Kapra-esque" really.....can't believe I just wrote that!!