Drama — No comments
23
May 11

The Wrestler ****

The westler is  a documentary style drama, that cements Micky Rourke’s return to the big screen as a credible acting force.

Randy the Ram (Rourke) is a pysically and mentally broken man. Westling is all that he knows and his best years are well and truly over.  At one time, he could have been a contender, but that time is past and after years of physically abusing his body in and out of the ring , he is quite literally ‘one body blow’ away from death.  A post match heart attack  forces Randy to re- assess his life and so he seeks to make amends for his absence from his daughters life. However the lure of the next big match is ever present and Randy struggles to define who he is outside of the ring as his relationship with his estranged daughter does not impove. It seems in the final analysis, that Wrestling and roar of the crowd, is all that Randy has.

You can’t help but feel for Randy in this film; although he is a deeply flawed individual he is extremely likeable and you are drawn into the story. The support cast does a top notch job and you can empathise with almost every other character in the film as they seem so real. You understand how they got to where they were and why they make the decisions that they do. The Wrestler can be heavy going to certain degree, but it is worth the effort.  An excellent film, 4 stars. Welcome back Mickey, more of this and less of the ‘action hero’ rubbish please.

The Wrester – You Tube trailer

Farewell/RIP / Uncategorized — No comments
23
May 11

RIP – Bill Hunter

Stalwart: Bill Hunter was seen as the archetypal working class Australian

Not generally cast as a leading actor,  Bill Hunter was the type of chap whose name would escape you, but he is instantly recognisable because you’ve grown up watching appear him in all sorts of  Australian movie and TV productions. He was an iconic character-actor and featured in numerous Aussie movies, including one of my favorites, Prucilla, Queen of the Desert. He also had a fairly prolific television acting career,  more often than not, he was cast as a rough and tumble, “great aussie - battler” . A sad day for Australian entertaiment industry.

Bill Hunter was only 71 … RIP.

Uncategorized — No comments
02
May 11

RESULT!

I’ve sworn myself off political blogging, as I tend to let myself get wound up by much of what goes on in the world. That’s why I gave it away to focus on something a little less ‘draining’  and a little more uplifting… movies.

But for what it is worth. My gratitude to those brave folks who have helped to bring Osama Bin Laden to justice. I was further delighted to hear that he was taken out in fire fight, rather than being despatched by a  bomb or drone which would have been far too merciful. This way, I hope that he knew what was coming and that he was absolutely terrified in his last moments. If there is a hell, I’m sure that his place there is assured.

My thoughts and heart felt best  wishes go out to the families of his victims.

That is all… carry on.

Drama — No comments
19
Apr 11

Precious ***1/2

I caught this one on free Rialto TV last weekend. I recorded about 18 hrs of the channel so hopefully will have some more movies to review.

Okay, Precious is not a nice movie, it is not a movie that anyone would say that they enjoyed, but I think it is an important movie, in the sense that it shows no matter how fucked up your life is, you can make decisions to make things better.

It is 1987 and  main character Clarise “Precious’ Jones is 16 years old, severely obese, pregnant with her second child by way of being raped by her father, who is also responsible for her first child; born with downs syndrome. On top of all this, she lives on welfare in the New York projects with her extremely verbally and physically abusive mother. As you can imagine, this is pretty grim stuff and can be quite heavy going at times. But there are moments of light and even a little comedy to lift things occasionally. The story revolves around Precious’s attempt to become educated despite her circumstances and the effect of her situation on those people around her who are involved in this process, her teachers, hospital staff and welfare officers.

The performances are stunning from virtually all players. New comer Gabourey Sibide as Precious was absolutely amazing and Mo’Nique as her mother was a frightening piece of work and possibly the stand-out performance of the movie. Even Mariah Carey did a convincing job as the welfare officer. Precious recieved several Oscar nominations  as well as major awards from the Golden Globes. Yep, it certainly is worth watching, but you will have to pick it when you are in the right mood. 3 1/2 stars.

Precious Trailer Here

Action / Comedy / Horror / WTF? — No comments
18
Apr 11

Machete *1/2

That little voice, you know the one… that tells you “don’t do it” was duly ignored when I selected this masterpiece at the DVD store. I knew before I even started, that it would probably be terrible, but I really wanted to see a film with Danny Trejo head-lining. Poor old Danny has been typecast as a bad guy for years, so I really wanted to see what director  Robbie Rodreguiz could do with him. It turns out that Machete is no real stretch from what Trejo has done previously, he’s just doing more of it… only this time hes a ‘good guy’.

This flick is part tribute, part mock of the old 70′s grindhouse style films, which were infamous for their depitctions of gratuitous sex and violence around a fairly poor plot. Somewhat remiss on the sex part, Machete certainly delivers the violence in bloody bucketloads. The plot too delivers in typical grindhouse fashion, which means… basically there isn’t much of one.

The redeeming factor is the cast, which is what makes an otherwise awful movie, almost watchable. But I still can’t even look at Steven Segal these days without pissing myself, let alone listen to him attempt to act. I have to say though,  Rodriguez scored bigtime when he got Robert de Niro on board. His character is an absolute hoot in this film.

Given everything I’ve written, it almost seems like this film is worth watching right? Well… kind of. Lets put it this way. This film is bloody awful on so many levels, but if viewed in the right frame of mind, you might actually get some enjoyment out of it. It’s your call…and watch out for that little voice.  1 1/2 stars!

Machete Trailer

Drama / Thriller — No comments
18
Apr 11

The Ghost Writer **

Love him or hate him – contorversial director Roman Polanski is no slouch when it comes to making excellent movies. The Pianist and Chinatown immediately come to mind. Which is why The Ghost Writer is so damn disappointing. Don’t believe the hype. This tale of political intrigue drags along at a snails pace. Ewan McGregor plays a ghost writer employed to assist ex-British PM Adam Lang (Pierce Brosnan), with writing his autobiography, at the same time Lang is being investigated by the ICC for war crimes. 

There are very nice production values, the fictional Old Haven Island, alluding to a Martha’s Vineyard location is  filmed on Sylt Island in the North sea, stark and hauntingly beautiful, it is the star of this movie. As for the characters and the plot? Unfortunately at the end of the day the remaining movie experience leaves us entirely underwhelmed. The plot is just plain weak. I won’t give it away, but we pretty much know what is going on by the time the final mystery is revealed and it isn’t really that much of a mystery and we are left thinking… well, so what? Now what?

Two stars (both for the scenery).

The Ghost Writer – Trailer

Farewell/RIP — No comments
11
Apr 11

Sidney Lumet (director) 1924 – 2011

A little before my time, but the films that come to mind that I have seen (mostly as a young fella) are  Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon and the Verdict which are absolute classics. Everyone raves about Lumets work in the movie Network, which I’ve never heard of, so I will have to see if I can find that one on back cataloge at the dvd shop. My personal favorite is 12 Angry Men. I think 12 Angry Men would have been his most controversial film and just a little too ‘on the nose for Hollywood at the time, because I fail to see how that movie didn’t win any oscars… politics eh?

He had a good innings at 86 years and was working up until only a couple of years ago with his last movie  – Before the Devil knows you’re Dead, which  meet with huge critical acclaim.

Rest in Peace Mr Lumet

Action / Sci-fi / War — No comments
11
Apr 11

Battle L.A ***1/2

Caught this one on the big screen at The Regent this weekend. How does one describe Battle LA? Well, this is as my wife would say… a total boys movie. We are plunged into the action almost immediately and it doesn’t let up. Reminiscient of movies such as Black Hawk Down and District 9. In fact, the parallels to both are ominous.

Off the tail of viewing Skyline (see previous post), another alien invasion movie, I wasn’t too excited that this would deliver anything different, but despite its many detractors, Battle LA is by far the best action movie to hit the big screen in a couple of years. I’t doesn’t try to be deep or intelligent, the story follows a squad of US marines as they carry out their objective to rescue civvies trapped in an overun police station. 

The effects are very convincing and the combat action is hard, fast and gritty. For us oldies, be aware that this is purposely filmed in documentary style for realism, so the camera work is a little shaky which I know really pisses some people off. So if you hated the camera work in District 9 for example; then you probably will want to avoid this film. Otherwise, if you can handle  some bumpy camera work, then we have some pure kick-arse escapism for the lads. Think Independance Day…  but without all the cheese and with “gunny” in charge! Highly reccomended, but leave the missus at home… and that’s an order son! Hooah?! 3 1/2 stars!

 “Battle L.A – Trailer“

Action / Sci-fi — No comments
08
Apr 11

Skyline **1/2

I was blown away by the trailer for this film a few months back and really wanted to catch it on the big screen. It did a short run at the local theatre but I missed the opportunity, so it was DVD option for me. I’m not a huge fan of sci-fi type movies, but Skyline wasn’t half bad. The story revolves around a group of friends stranded in an L.A apartment complex during an alien invasion. Just by staring at the blue lights attached to alien vehicles and various alien monsters, humans are instantly hypnotised and easily taken by the creatures to be used for dubious purposes.

Its chock full o’ CGI which is actually very, very good, but the effects drive the movie and the plot is very limited. After all,  when you are stuck in a building surrounded by aliens and going outside is pretty much certain death, what’s left to talk about? Given the less than satisfactory ending in this movie there appears to be the possibility of a sequel somewhere down the track.  I guess well will see.

Certainly watchable, lots of great effects and action, but don’t expect anything deep and meaningful and you may not be too impressed with the finale’.

“Skyline – Trailer“

Drama / Thriller — No comments
08
Apr 11

The American **

I read a lot of good things about this film and although I don’t care for Clooney’s politics, he is a great actor so I picked this one up at the DVD store. That the film was made in the Italian countryside also made me think that it would have some appeal for my wife, who gets a bit antsy if I get too many “boys” movies,  as she likes to call them.

Well,  the countryside certainly delivered and The American is beautifully filmed, no doubt about it. But the storyline was just a little too basic and too slow. The script would have fit very nicely on 3 or 4 pages of A4. There are 3 very well put together action sequences, but despite the slick movie trailer, it turns out that the American is just too slow and too glib. Maybe I’m too much of an action guy, but for me, 2 stars is all I could muster.

“The American – Trailer“

Comedy — No comments
08
Apr 11

Due Date ***

An easy 3 stars. Due Date is simply hilarious. Without going into plot detail, this is a reluctant-buddy movie combined with a cross country road trip. It’s along the same lines as the classic Planes, Trains & Automobiles, but a little ruder and cruder; going places that seem to be a little more acceptable to go these days.

Definately not for the kids, but there are great action and comedy sequences for the grown ups and the pairing of Robert Downey and new blood  Zach Galifianakis is absolutely spot on. I haven’t laughed out loud like that in quite a while… and the wife loved it too! Bonus!

In fact, Due Date has made me want to re-visit the classic Planes, Trains and Automobiles - starring Steve Martin & John Candy. My wife hasn’t seen it, so I’ll be seaching for that one on the  DVD store back catalog.

Due Date works very nicely… no brainer, see it!

 ”Due Date Trailer“

Action / Comedy / Horror / Sci-fi / WTF? — No comments
06
Apr 11

Piranha 2010 ***

Ok, there is no way around it, this is pure movie schmultz, cynically produced to fill the theatres as a summer block buster. But I have to say… it really works! I saw this at home in 2D and absolutely loved it. Wish I’d caught it on the big screen in 3D.

Those of us who are old enough to remember the original Piranha movies might be inclined to walk on by this one at the DVD store, but if you want a fast moving, hilarious roller coaster ride of a movie that delivers excellent production values, tons of shocks and giggles and buckets of gore, then you are going to enjoy this film. There’s no deep and meaningful messages, just pure entertainment. 

Even my wife, who would not consider this sort of movie  to be her ‘cup of tea’ thought it was great fun. A little extra credit comes by way of a top notch cast who “ham” it up enough without going over the top.

 It’s no Jaws, but then what movie is? (Jaws is the pinnacle! IMHO).

 ”Piranha 2010 trailer“

Action / Horror / Sci-fi / WTF? — No comments
06
Apr 11

Gabriel *

Not really sure how to catergorise this one other than to  avoid at all costs!

 The premise behind the story is sound enough, which is essentially a tale of fallen angels fighting each other for control of Purgatory. However, the script and delivery cannot rise above the lack of budget and subsequent poor production values. This is not helped by some terrible over-acting with the Aussie cast sounding ridiculous in their attempts  to reproduce American accents. Gabriel is a try-hard, low budget mish mash, that tries to cash in on far superior movies of the same vein (i.e.  The Crow, Leigon and Constantine). There also appears to be an attempt to reproduce the cinematic effect from the movie 300. Needless to say the producers of Gabriel fail dismally here too.

Our main character played by Andy Whitfield, of the brilliant Spartucus series will no doubt want to put this one behind him and you would do better to leave this one where it belongs… on the shelf. 1 star!

 ”Gabriel 2007 Trailer“

Action / Thriller — No comments
05
Apr 11

Armored **1/2

Another DVD random choice. I figured that given the cast of Matt Dillon and Larry Fishbourne  the production values would at least make it watchable. I was right and Armored didn’t disappoint. Simple plots are usually the best with action movies and this plot is simple. A group of security officers decide to fake a hold up and keep the money for themselves. The plan is fairly sound and starts off well, however one of the group has a change of heart after the point of no return, which results in things going terribly pear-shapped… very quickly.

This is one of those movies where things just get progressively bad for everyone involed, its both exciting and stressful and will have you on the edge of your seat at times. You should be able to watch this with the better half. There are a few holes in the plot and we are left with some questions, but nothing that will keep you up at night. Armoured is a solid actioner. 2 1/2 stars!

“Armored Trailer“

Action — No comments
05
Apr 11

Blood and Bone ***

For a random grab at the the local DVD store, this actually wasn’t a bad pick. The story is pretty basic, full of dumb but fun streetfighting violence. Recently released ex-con Bone (Michael Jai-White) does the local underworld streetfighting circut in order to work his way through the ranks and to find the man responsible for setting up and ordering the murder of his prison cell mate. Thats pretty much it. Production values are good and the fight sequences are excellent. This really is a movie for the boys, however some scenes feature seriously built and buff man-flesh which may be enough to keep the better halfs’ attention. Jai-White himself is certainly no 200 pound weakling.

It’s simple movie, it moves quickly and is entertaining enough if you are into combative action. So much so that  I’ll be keeping an eye out for other movies featuring Jai-White. For fight fans; real streetfighting legend Kimbo Slice, makes an appearance. 3 stars!

 
“Blood and Bone Trailer”

Farewell/RIP — No comments
23
Mar 11

Elizabeth Taylor 1932 – 2011

Without question one of the originals from Hollywood’s ‘golden age’. In her heyday she was a stunning beauty and a extremely talented actress and one of the first female stars to command a six figure payday (for her performance in the epic Cleopatra). But I am a bit too young to reminisce about her movies. Cleopatra and Taming of the Shrew are the only ones I recall having seen in their entirety. But as I recall they were brilliant and Ms Taylor was magnificent in both.

My knowledge of Liz Taylor comes from the headlines generated  by her private antics throughout the 80′s and 90′s , rather than anything that she ever did as an actress, her tumultuous relationship with actor Richard Burton and her odd relationships and weddings to somewhat dodgy characters (married 8 times), alcoholism,  her ever deteriorating health, the gay icon-ism, spearheading fundraising specifically for aids research, not to mention her unusual friendship with Michael Jackson. These are the things I think about when I think of Liz Taylor. It’s generational thing of course and so for another generation her passing evokes memories of some seriously great movies. I am in no doubt that Hollywood will give her an amazing send-off. She was 79 years old.

Random Trivia: The Columbia Pictures Logo (the torch lady) was modelled on Elizabeth Taylor.

Action / Comedy / Crime-Drama — No comments
22
Mar 11

To Love, Honor & Obey ****

The cover pretty much covers it… unmissable indeed.

This film simply rocks. The story revolves around two crime families and outsider Johnny’s (Johnny Miller) attempt to start a turf war between the two to expediate his rise within one family headed by Ray (Ray Winstone). Yes – all the actors use their own first names in the movie and the film is scripted as basically a series of improv scenes and skits.

This movie superbly combines the genres of Brit crime-drama, action and black comedy but comes across equally as edgy and slick as much bigger buget movies like Lock, Stock or Snatch. The BBC production budget might have been low, but delivery is first class all the way. Winstone, Frost and Law are wonderful. But the real standout performance comes from Rhys Ifans who has never been so cool or dangerous and Ray Burdis and Kathy Burke as the ‘couple’ are absolutely hillarious. This is a very different film and many critics (mostly US and Canadian) have slammed it because they just don’t get it. Tossers!

Seriously, if you only see 1 Brit crime-dama in your life – well, this is it. Oh, one other thing… FIX BAYONETS!

Sorry, I couldnt find a embeded code for the trailer so you’ll have to check it ot at You Tube. The american voice over makes it sound stupid, so just get the bloody movie out and enjoy the show.

Love, honor & Obey – trailer here

Comedy — No comments
21
Mar 11

Death at a Funeral (2010) **1/2

This is the American remake of the British movie of the same title from 2007. Keep in mind that my opinion comes from having seen the original movie and prefering that version.

The  plot and much of the script is essentially the same although delivery is somewhat over-exaggerated in this version.  Death at a Funeral 2010 is basically an extreme comedy of errors that takes place during a family funeral. Don’t be intimidated by the cover. Although  the cast is 90% African American;  this is not a typically “black” movie per se. The revised  americanised script would have been easily transposed onto a modern, westernised family of almost any race or religion.

As with the original movie, instead of a  story revolving around leading actors, this is a tale of characters  and everyone does a pretty decent job with particularly great performances from Tracy Morgan and James Marsden. Vertically challenged actor Peter Drinklage also reprises his role from the original movie in this effort. However, despite solid performances, it must be remembered that this is a remake of a movie that is only 3 years old; which hardly seems necessary. The cynic in me feels that this is really just an attempt to cash in on the names of Chris Rock and Martin Lawrence.

To be fair, I think that the 2010 version of Death at a Funeral probably delivers enough chuckles if you are just looking for a bit of silly fun. However, if you have seen the original and loved it like I did, then you may struggle with this version.  Better yet, check out the DVD store’s back catalog and see if you can find the original movie. Overall, 2 1/2 stars!

“Death at a Funeral 2010 Trailer”

“Death at a Funeral 2007 Trailer“

Action / Crime-Drama — No comments
20
Mar 11

The Town ***1/2

I wished I’d seen this on the big screen; simply put, its very good. Off the bat, I have to admit that I’m not all that keen on Ben Affleck as an actor, but this is a great movie with a solid, viable plot and plenty of action. Even the missus thought this was a good movie;  despite it being quite ”blokey”.  So if  you find that the pressure is on you to grab a DVD to take home and watch with the better half,  you might just be able to have your cake and eat it too with The Town.

Affleck also directed this one and I think that is increasingly where his talent lies, hailing back to his partnership in the direction stakes with Matt Damon for Good Will Hunting. If you loved the action in movies like Heat or Ronin and the understated drama of movies like Gone Baby Gone, then you won’t be disappointed with this effort. Certainly worth watching - 3 1/2 stars!

“ The Town Trailer “

Action / Horror / Sci-fi — No comments
20
Mar 11

Resident Evil – Afterlife **

Ok, I like mindless violence as much as the next guy; I thought RE 1 and even RE 2 were great fun, but much like RE 3 this latest installment is just a little too much. At the end of the day, how far can you push a franchaise based on a video game? It seems this one is being milked for all its worth. The CGI is gratuitous and not all that convincing. The  plot is pretty limited and if you have watched the last three movies, there are some serious continuity errors, for example in RE 3 the planet was a virtual desert, in this version, the world is still green and oceans exist.

There are some moments of cinematic action brilliance. After all, what’s not to like about hot chicks with cool guns despatching hordes of bad guys in matrixesque style? I’ll admit that enough good action in a movie usually makes up for any crappiness in plot or production values. Unfortunately for RE Afterlife the downtime is just too glib.  Add to this an extremely tedious and almost continuous techno soundtrack and you are left feeling like you’ve seen and heard it all before.   I suggest that you check out the trailer, as most of the good bits are in it and then maybe consider taking  a look at RE 1 or 2 instead if you haven’t seen them already . Better yet, if you really want to enjoy the RE experience, try the games. Two stars!

“ RE Afterlife Trailer “

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