Happy New Year!
The bells are imminent! Hope you all have a great New Year! :)
My year summary and final film lists will come later, work has delayed this month's reviews! Argh.
Films of December
Good Will Hunting
I was quite reserved watching this film, what with all the praise it continuously got from everyone, but as it turned out this is as moving and well written as they say! Matt Damon's layabout underachiever who has the mind of a genius is compelling through the twisting and turning situations he finds himself in.
The writing has an intellectual but often lighthearted or grim uniqueness to it; the first scene with a confrontation in a pub which becomes a meeting of intellectual prowess rather than brawn sets the pace perfectly. I was drawn completely into the character's plight and wanted to know the conclusion of this battle between heart and mind.
Gran Turino
A lot of people rave about this film. I wonder exactly what they find so fascinating about it, basically all it is is Clint Eastwood being a racist war veteran. But to give it its due, it had me laughing and Eastwood plays it well through the middle point; his grumpy, widower, scowling mask breaking into smiles and not-entirely-reluctant gratitude as his Chinese neighbours show him so much respect and appreciation.
It is quite contrived... and the ending is really quite disheartening (to me at least) but it has a great heart and wit in there.
Gi Joe: The Rise of Cobra
So this is the Transformers biggest contender of 2009. While I didn't grow up with the toys (I think I had one) I get the gist of it; good versus evil. Duh.
This film knows exactly what it is. It is a film which is set in a kid's Gi Joe playset, all of the actors are dolls being thrown and hurled about, the trucks and planes are being driven and tossed by giant invisible children's hands! It is very much an action movie, I am sure fans will like it, while the rest of us will be a little bewildered. Especially by the ending!
Fun and silly, Transformers has the better effects, but something about Gi Joe retains more of what it trying to adapt.
Intolerable Cruelty
Hm. Having seen a lot of The Ugly Truth this year... I couldn't help but watch this thinking, people should see this one instead! True... this film doesn't have much in it really, with a dose of trying to be too clever with too little. A romantic comedy set between a lawyer and a woman set to make millions by divorcing the richest man she can dupe.
I certainly didn't like Catherine Zeta Jones' character, with all of her deliberate ploys and gameplaying and while George Clooney squared off with her nicely, the plot between them just got too muddled by the final act.
For the Coen brothers, it is quite standard.
Mulholland Falls
Another quite standard affair. This film certainly *looks* good, (but then, there's a lot to say about 1940s American style!) following a small elite police team as they investigate a mysterious murder of a beautiful woman.
While the film looks good, has some nice - but perhaps cliche - characters and developments... I saw the solution to their mystery the moment I saw it. For that... it really did nothing for me... being a thriller.
Teeth
Uhm... err... This was brought to my attention recently, having seen the cover I thought it was a vampire film, but when I was very quickly corrected.. I figured I should... experience it.
Vagina Dentata (get that out of the way)... a myth that is actually recorded throughout history. A sweet-sixteen high school girl discovers she is quite different from other girls, she seemingly has an evolutionary mutation designed as a defense mechanism...
The film has the idea of a horror movie, but it plays out a lot more sensitively at first; a girl at odds with her own body. It is probably more appealing to girls to watch, or at least the final... bloody acts will be both hilarious and less... uncomfortable.
It doesn't leave much to the imagination!
Thank You for Smoking
Another odd film. I can certainly see why Aaron Eckheart got so much praise in this standout role (and landing the role of Dark Knight's Two-Face); he completely steals the show. He plays one of the most hated men in the world, a spin doctor working for a big American cigarette company. His job is to make cigarettes out as a good thing, and put a good spin on the endless supply of negativity thrown at him.
While you certainly struggle to like him at first... you find yourself respecting his intelligence, his honest beliefs and what he wants for people.
It certainly isn't a "Yay, start smoking!" campaign, of course not, but it simply puts a new spin on a long steamrollered protest. It makes the political figures behind anti-cigarette campaigns look like bumbling idiots, and makes you feel good about it! Intelligent, thoughtful and wittily written.
Elizabeth
A historical epic. As such it makes me feel bad for not knowing my history already! But I certainly liked this film, it shows the period in stark reality; a clashing of religious beliefs in a whirlwind around Elizabeth, one moment deemed a heretic, the next crowned queen of England.
The film is dark and full of strife and turmoil as this much hated woman attempts to run the country as she sees fit, while in every shadow lies enemies and assassins set to overthrow her in the first opportunity.
An epic that kept me watching, Geoffrey Rush was great in this, while Cate Blanchett fits the role perfectly. I did feel the ending was harrowing though...
Elizabethtown
Hmmmmm. Orlando Bloom is a disgraced shoe-designer who having lost his company millions ("round up to a billion") is one moment away from killing himself. Unfortunately for him, a family fatality takes him away to a quaint little southern town where en route he meets a crazy, full-of-life stewardess played by Kirsten Dunst.
Everything you have probably worked out already, happened. This film is quite expected. It reminds me of Garden State, except with far too many shallow characters and out of place crazy humour.
Kirsten Dunst is annoying. She isn't written as quaint and odd (as she should be) more.. so annoying you want to slam her head onto a desk.
It is too clever with its heartstring pulling, being too keen and over doing it. As such it does have some heartwarming moments but for example, the ending lasts waaaaaaaaay too long.
Games of December
Lego Batman (360)
What can one say about Lego Batman... really? It is Batman in Lego!
This plays exactly the same as Star Wars Lego but with the Batman comic characters, from Batman to Joker, Nightwing to Clayface. Most of them are there! So you play through the stories, single or co-op, as heroes or villians, manically mashing the X button to obliterate everything in sight.
So it doesn't have much to it... but there is a charm that cannot be denied which keeps you playing! It is... Batman in Lego! I don't know, I just love seeing characters like Two Face and Mr Freeze personified in Lego. Silly, innocent fun.
Dragon Age (360)
It is too early to tell! I've only had it a few days and this looks to develop a loooong way. I can only compare to Bioware's other title Mass Effect, which I love. While I noticed immediately that the graphics weren't as polished, I did see that the dialogue was still catchy with witty characterisation.
The gameplay is more detailed than Mass Effect, making for a much more occupying game, inventory and (by the looks of things) item creation and modification are three times more complex. I get the impression the game's length is also longer!
I look forward to playing more. I just hope I get my teeth into it before.... Mass Effect 2 arrives.
My year summary and final film lists will come later, work has delayed this month's reviews! Argh.
Films of December
Good Will Hunting
I was quite reserved watching this film, what with all the praise it continuously got from everyone, but as it turned out this is as moving and well written as they say! Matt Damon's layabout underachiever who has the mind of a genius is compelling through the twisting and turning situations he finds himself in.
The writing has an intellectual but often lighthearted or grim uniqueness to it; the first scene with a confrontation in a pub which becomes a meeting of intellectual prowess rather than brawn sets the pace perfectly. I was drawn completely into the character's plight and wanted to know the conclusion of this battle between heart and mind.
Gran Turino
A lot of people rave about this film. I wonder exactly what they find so fascinating about it, basically all it is is Clint Eastwood being a racist war veteran. But to give it its due, it had me laughing and Eastwood plays it well through the middle point; his grumpy, widower, scowling mask breaking into smiles and not-entirely-reluctant gratitude as his Chinese neighbours show him so much respect and appreciation.
It is quite contrived... and the ending is really quite disheartening (to me at least) but it has a great heart and wit in there.
Gi Joe: The Rise of Cobra
So this is the Transformers biggest contender of 2009. While I didn't grow up with the toys (I think I had one) I get the gist of it; good versus evil. Duh.
This film knows exactly what it is. It is a film which is set in a kid's Gi Joe playset, all of the actors are dolls being thrown and hurled about, the trucks and planes are being driven and tossed by giant invisible children's hands! It is very much an action movie, I am sure fans will like it, while the rest of us will be a little bewildered. Especially by the ending!
Fun and silly, Transformers has the better effects, but something about Gi Joe retains more of what it trying to adapt.
Intolerable Cruelty
Hm. Having seen a lot of The Ugly Truth this year... I couldn't help but watch this thinking, people should see this one instead! True... this film doesn't have much in it really, with a dose of trying to be too clever with too little. A romantic comedy set between a lawyer and a woman set to make millions by divorcing the richest man she can dupe.
I certainly didn't like Catherine Zeta Jones' character, with all of her deliberate ploys and gameplaying and while George Clooney squared off with her nicely, the plot between them just got too muddled by the final act.
For the Coen brothers, it is quite standard.
Mulholland Falls
Another quite standard affair. This film certainly *looks* good, (but then, there's a lot to say about 1940s American style!) following a small elite police team as they investigate a mysterious murder of a beautiful woman.
While the film looks good, has some nice - but perhaps cliche - characters and developments... I saw the solution to their mystery the moment I saw it. For that... it really did nothing for me... being a thriller.
Teeth
Uhm... err... This was brought to my attention recently, having seen the cover I thought it was a vampire film, but when I was very quickly corrected.. I figured I should... experience it.
Vagina Dentata (get that out of the way)... a myth that is actually recorded throughout history. A sweet-sixteen high school girl discovers she is quite different from other girls, she seemingly has an evolutionary mutation designed as a defense mechanism...
The film has the idea of a horror movie, but it plays out a lot more sensitively at first; a girl at odds with her own body. It is probably more appealing to girls to watch, or at least the final... bloody acts will be both hilarious and less... uncomfortable.
It doesn't leave much to the imagination!
Thank You for Smoking
Another odd film. I can certainly see why Aaron Eckheart got so much praise in this standout role (and landing the role of Dark Knight's Two-Face); he completely steals the show. He plays one of the most hated men in the world, a spin doctor working for a big American cigarette company. His job is to make cigarettes out as a good thing, and put a good spin on the endless supply of negativity thrown at him.
While you certainly struggle to like him at first... you find yourself respecting his intelligence, his honest beliefs and what he wants for people.
It certainly isn't a "Yay, start smoking!" campaign, of course not, but it simply puts a new spin on a long steamrollered protest. It makes the political figures behind anti-cigarette campaigns look like bumbling idiots, and makes you feel good about it! Intelligent, thoughtful and wittily written.
Elizabeth
A historical epic. As such it makes me feel bad for not knowing my history already! But I certainly liked this film, it shows the period in stark reality; a clashing of religious beliefs in a whirlwind around Elizabeth, one moment deemed a heretic, the next crowned queen of England.
The film is dark and full of strife and turmoil as this much hated woman attempts to run the country as she sees fit, while in every shadow lies enemies and assassins set to overthrow her in the first opportunity.
An epic that kept me watching, Geoffrey Rush was great in this, while Cate Blanchett fits the role perfectly. I did feel the ending was harrowing though...
Elizabethtown
Hmmmmm. Orlando Bloom is a disgraced shoe-designer who having lost his company millions ("round up to a billion") is one moment away from killing himself. Unfortunately for him, a family fatality takes him away to a quaint little southern town where en route he meets a crazy, full-of-life stewardess played by Kirsten Dunst.
Everything you have probably worked out already, happened. This film is quite expected. It reminds me of Garden State, except with far too many shallow characters and out of place crazy humour.
Kirsten Dunst is annoying. She isn't written as quaint and odd (as she should be) more.. so annoying you want to slam her head onto a desk.
It is too clever with its heartstring pulling, being too keen and over doing it. As such it does have some heartwarming moments but for example, the ending lasts waaaaaaaaay too long.
Games of December
Lego Batman (360)
What can one say about Lego Batman... really? It is Batman in Lego!
This plays exactly the same as Star Wars Lego but with the Batman comic characters, from Batman to Joker, Nightwing to Clayface. Most of them are there! So you play through the stories, single or co-op, as heroes or villians, manically mashing the X button to obliterate everything in sight.
So it doesn't have much to it... but there is a charm that cannot be denied which keeps you playing! It is... Batman in Lego! I don't know, I just love seeing characters like Two Face and Mr Freeze personified in Lego. Silly, innocent fun.
Dragon Age (360)
It is too early to tell! I've only had it a few days and this looks to develop a loooong way. I can only compare to Bioware's other title Mass Effect, which I love. While I noticed immediately that the graphics weren't as polished, I did see that the dialogue was still catchy with witty characterisation.
The gameplay is more detailed than Mass Effect, making for a much more occupying game, inventory and (by the looks of things) item creation and modification are three times more complex. I get the impression the game's length is also longer!
I look forward to playing more. I just hope I get my teeth into it before.... Mass Effect 2 arrives.