What a refreshing movie, something different amidst alot of the same thing. Tarantino's 10-year-in-the-working film comes to theatres to give audiences a taste of what the war should have been like.
Quentin Tarantino's darkly comical war movie following deathproof tells the stories of small groups of people that, during the events of WW2, aim to end the ongoing war. These include the Basterds, a group of Nazi killing solders, Shoshanna Dreyfus a Jewish escapee who now lives under the guise of a french Cinema owner, and Bridget vonHammersmark a German actress batting for the other side.
To begin with, let it be noted that out of all Tarantino's films, Inglorious Basterds is technically his most tame, there are no really long tracking shots, obscure camera movements or edits, so in fact, this may be Quentin's most original.
The film's dialogue did however tend to drag on a bit even though the monologues were cut short, but nonetheless the film still moved at a reasonable pace with a slight lag in the second quarter.
Acting-wise, there are some superb performances from Christoph Waltz as Hans Landa, Melanie Laurent as Shoshanna and Diane Kruger as Hammersmark, especially from Laurent, I personally felt that her story was the most endearing, her story opens the film and gives it it's "Cinematic" ending.
*edit, on a second viewing of this film explodes in cinema exuberance and the whole film works as a whole.
Hilarious, dramatic, and refreshing storytelling from a master of his art - 10/10
Sam Raimi's return to horror with this film about a Young woman who, after denying a Gypsy lady an extension on her loan (and shaming her in a room full of people) and is cursed and in 3 days she'll be taken to hell by the Lamia spirit.
First of all: filmically, this movie is a very solid horror flick, with well placed scares and some unexpected ones thrown in too. Sam Raimi is a man who knows where to put the camera (no sexual connotations there :P) when the spirits attack Christie he very nicely slides into a Dutch tilt which works very well. Sam pulls some good performances out of the actors and the visual effects are well placed and used to further the story.
With some nice Evil dead-like gruesome moments (vomiting, blood noses spraying everywhere) Sam has taken us back to the good old days of horror movies where it wasn't about how much sex and limb removals you could get in 5 seconds*coughHOSTELcough*
It might be interesting to note that Sam Raimi chose a very odd film stock, which reminisced of the 80's to 90's (he also uses the 80's Universal logo to open the movie) it gave the movie just the right type of retro feel to finally take it away from the crap horror of today *coughREMAKEScough* the ending however works and doesn't at the same time its left me with mixed feelings i dint know whether to feel sorry for Christie or the old Gypsy so the last 3 minutes didn't work for me but a good effort on behalf of all the filmmakers and its alot better than the crap horror fare of today.
SPOILER
*edit* there is a scene I forgot about and with review I do belive i have made a mistake, the ending fits the movie (there is a scene near the end where the protagonist buys a jacket, proving that she is still selfish)
Coraline is about a rowdy girl, ignored by her parents, who finds a magic doorway that leads to a Topsy-turvy world where everyone loves Coraline and even pronounce her name right! But as the story unfolds, things might not be as good as she first thought. Henry Selick is a true master of his art! After seeing his long-awaited follow up to the Nightmare Before Christmas (which many people think Buton directed) Henry Selick pulls off an equally as good film.
I'll first talk about the 3D, I have only seen one other 3D film and was not impressed however for Coraline, it worked to fantastic effect. It is all due to the fact that Coraline is clay-maytion. Because all the set is actually real the 3D gives the vibrant world of the story a really nice depth that works when the filmmakers do focus pulls, dolly's and cranes that pull the audience further into the film.
The story (based off a Niel Gaiman [stardust, American Gods] children's novel) is rather simple and almost fairytale-like in it's moralistic structure but nonetheless it still drags you in and holds you till it's triple-hit climax. Also it might pay to mention that the story gets a little dark and scary but it it DEFINITELY FOR ALL AGES, anyone can watch this and it's the PC parents who force their children to avoid this movie and their kids consequently learn zero morals LET YOUR CHILDREN WATCH THESE MOVIES, you won't regret it.
Fantastic cast, brilliant direction and an enthralling story - 9/10
If you can get past the corny dialogue this film actually isn't half bad (and certainly not as bad as recent action screw ups *couh transformers cough*)
Apparently the script was rushed to beat the writers strike and it kind of shows, there was serious need for a rewrite but its still has its moments and even a good thematic statement of Emotion vs Logic.
Acting is average, but considering the corny dialogue they pull it off semi realistically and the high concept allows for some leverage in the corniness of the whole thing.
It might also pay to mention the brilliant Cinematography on the filmmakers's part, there were some really interesting shots in the movie that took me back a few times.
My one dispute is backstory. In this movie, they have flashbacks of practically every character, but then they have the characters talk about it in dialogue and the audience is sitting there bored because we know already! Some more editing was definitely required and a lot could have been cut out but again, the whole corniness kind of works
A reasonable action/popcorn flick and so corny it kind of works (and it is still better than transformers 2) 5/10
R.I.P. John Hughes
After suffering a Heart attack the 59 year old ICONIC film director is now in the history books of the great directors. As the maker of the most influential films of the 80's (The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Home Alone, Pretty in Pink), we will mourn the loss and celebrate the work of John Hughes, may your spirit live on in your work.
New Trailer!!!- The Lovely Bones
The new video for Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings)'s new suburban 70's almost epic. My personal favourite novel of all time, this film is sure not to disappoint with a powerhouse cast (including OscarnominatedSaoirseRonan a newcomer who shall rock the industry, and Stanley Tucci of insurmountable critical acclaim) and unbelievable source material, this movie is a surefire Oscar Sweeper and destined to be in my (and other critics) top movies of 2009.
First Oscar Predictions
With the announcement of the 10(rather than 5) best picture nominations returning to the prestigious ceremony, I thought i should take a crack at the crystal ball.
1) The Lovely Bones - Dir: Peter Jackson, Cast: SaoirseRonan, mark Whalberg, Susan sarandon, Stanley Tucci (see above)
2) Shutter Island - Dir: Martin Scorsese, Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Ben Kingsley, Mark Ruffalo (though not a personal fan of his work, it's Scorsese, a master of his art)
3) Avatar - Dir: James Cameron, Cast: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver (An odd choice i know but there is no question that James Cameron of Titanic fame has the abillity to revolutionise 3D with this, I only hope it does not dissapoint, however the thematics of his idea seem very solid indeed.)
4) UP - Dir: Peter Docter & Bob Peterson, Cast:Edward Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai (I haven't seen this year as I am still waiting for an Aus release [so bloody far away from the American one :( ] the reviews from audiences and critics alike are nothing but praise, and despite it's early release it will still get best Animated if not in this category)
5) Where The Wild Things Are - Dir: Spike Jonze, Cast: Max Records, Catherine O'Hara, Forest Whitaker (this is one from the blue, but if Spike has anything to say about it this will be a sleeper hit with critics and audiences alike, and the trailer looks fantastic)
6) Nine - Dir: Rob Marshall, Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Penelope Cruz (Musicals have always had their place at the Oscars, and being an adaptation of the Fellini masterpiece 8 1/2, and considering the success of Chicago, Rob Marshall may be on the money)
7) Invictus - Dir: Clint Eastwood, Cast: Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon (come on, it's Clint Eastwood and Morgan freeman doing a biopic on Mandella, an easy shoe-in, that's not to say it won't be a masterpiece
8) The Hurt Locker - Dir: Kathryn Bigelow, Cast: Jeremy Renner, Guy Pierce, Rolph Fiennes (though it has an early release, there are non-stop rave reviews about this extremely different war movie and a very engaging plot if i do say so myself)
9) Precious - Dir: Lee Daniels, Cast: Gabby Sidibe, Mo'Nique (again, rave reviews and an intense dramatic plot put this one up here for now)
10) I am saving this spot for that independent movie that always seems to come out of nowhere 3 months before the Oscars as we saw with Juno and Slumdog Millionaire and Little Miss Sunshine, they almost always get at least a few nominations.
What a refreshing movie, something different amidst alot of the same thing. Tarantino's 10-year-in-the-working film comes to theatres to give audiences a taste of what the war should have been like.
