A movie watchers blog

[Monkeyboy]

Sadly, no.

[CarloOos]

Yeah, me too, which is why I watched it. It was just awful though. All the characters were really one dimensional. Everyone was really unlikeable. Even Christopher Walken was shit in it.

I would say, however, it's worth watching for Vinnie Jones trying to do an Irish accent: he's all "sure and begorrah! I'm Oirish, so I am" but his cockney accent keeps breaking through. Hillarious.

Oh fuck, if it's Vinnie Jones' Oirish accent you're after then you really need to see Strength and Honour. An absolutely dreadful mashup of Snatch and Rocky about a gypsy fighting tournament, which almost completely redeemed Vinnie Jones' character... 'Smasher O'Driscoll'.

[Treble]

Vertigo

I'll probably get slaughtered for this but I didn't think it was that great at all. I went in with high hopes, having always heard it being mentioned as one of Hitchcock's best but it just didn't click with me. The premise of the film is a good one but there's so much clutter that you could easily remove 40 minutes to an hour and not be any the worse off. The first 45 minutes alone could have probably been cut down to about 10-15 minutes worth, as much as I love Jimmy Stewart, I didn't need to stare at him pulling 'this is interesting' faces constantly as he drove down street after street following the other car. We get it, he's tailing her, cut it, print it, move on. The part of Midge was totally redundant, they tried to horn in a 'jealous other woman' angle but her character was so under developed that she added absolutely nothing and her jealousy (driving by in her car and that stupid painting) had no reasoning behind it, stuck out like a sore thumb and broke the flow of the film.

Then the main characters, one minute Scottie is just tailing Judy, the next he's fallen deeply in love with her for no discernable reason. Judy's character is bi-polar, she can't seem to make up her mind whether she wants to be with Scottie or not, I mustn't let him know who I am...oh, go on then dress me up exactly as you remember me.

Ugh, a deeply frustrating experience after all the plaudits. I'm sure there's something I'm missing but I can't face the tedium of giving it another go.

Yeah, there seem to be a few things you might have got the wrong end of the stick about (or not - it's all perception!) but I'd say Midge is a useful sounding board as she shows how far from normal, rational behaviour Scottie has strayed. She also loves him and he doesn't notice her because he's blinded by obsession. Well that's what I infer from the film but, to be fair, I'm always like, "Urrrrgh, that's Miss Ellie!" which sort of pulls me out of the moment.

Scottie's obsessed with Judy - an 'Amour Fou' to quote the Sopranos - as he was bewitched by Madeleine's otherness; her ethereal character, and tries to re-create what he had with Madeleine. That's why he falls for her 'for no discernible reason'.

Judy's also a mixture of damaged goods, femme fatale and fatalist. She wants Scottie's attention, partly for selfish reasons (protection; love) partly for selfless reasons (she destroyed his life; she wants to make him happy) and partly because she's a dangerous depressive with a warped outlook on life and death (she was part of a murder conspiracy and doesn't give a monkey's).

I also read a good piece of journalism a few years ago that said Scottie was doomed from the start: he hangs from the gutter after the opening chase, with no discernible way he can be saved - from how the scene is shot and directed, he can only plummet to his death, and we never see a rescue. The presages his doom, and everything he touches afterward is ruined. I love Vertigo.

[lordcookie]

Stake Land - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1464580/

Martin was a normal teenage boy before the country collapsed in an empty pit of economic and political disaster. A vampire epidemic has swept across what is left of the nation's abandoned towns and cities, and it's up to Mister, a death dealing, rogue vampire hunter, to get Martin safely north to Canada, the continent's New Eden.

Despite the good reviews I wasn't particularly looking forward to this seeing as the director's previous film, Mulberry Street (another horror movie well received by critics) was very poor. Thankfully this is a much, much better film which is no doubt helped by a bigger budget and better cast and crew. In many ways it reminded me of a straight laced and downbeat version of Zombieland as a tough zombie vampire killer takes a kid under his wing as they travel around America looking for creatures to kill and building a new family along the way. Although billed as a vampire film they are really zombies in all but name but the director puts a good enough spin on it to make the film stand out from the crowd. Performances are surprisingly competent and they do a good job at eeking out the tension during the set pieces. The set pieces themselves normally have a novel twist on the standard genre fare which is very pleasing to see. The characters don't exactly break out of their stereotypes but they are perfectly serviceable and for once you care for their survival which is pretty rare in most modern horror. Not quite a classic but well worth a watch.

***

I Am Number Four - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1464540/

Aliens and their Guardians are hiding on Earth from intergalactic bounty hunters. They can only be killed in numerical order, and Number Four is next on the list. This is his story.

As the studios desperately look for the next Harry Potter and Twilight saga they can peddle to the kids we have seen a high number of duds based on popular teen books. I Am Number Four is yet another one to add to the growing list but it was hardly surprising given director DJ Caruso seems incapable of making a decent film. The plot had potential but it is wrapped up in such cliché teen angst bullshit that any good moments (and they are very fleeting) are instantly forgotten. All the characters are dull as dishwater especially the lead, Alex Pettyfer. The villains are characterless and too absent from the screen to really be effective whilst the central romance is as chaste and dull as the one in the Twilight films (although this is nowhere near as bad as those woeful excuses for entertainment). Hopefully the rumoured second film never sees the light of day.

* 1/2

The Last Exorcism - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1320244/

A troubled evangelical minister agrees to let his last exorcism be filmed by a documentary crew.

In a way part of the films greatest strength is also one of its biggest weaknesses as the whole sham angle kills any tension in the first half but also makes the characters more interesting. When the demon possessions starts they are handled reasonably well and helped by strong performances, particularly by the possessed girl, but the scenes don't exactly break the mould when dealing with this sub genre. Unfortunately as the film progresses rather than getting more tense and scarier it just slowly unravels until the end which didn't work for me at all. Another problem is the found footage format. It can be a successful horror device but it is also easy to predict the ways it will be used (keeping things off screen, bad lighting, overly reliant on jump scares etc.) and The Last Exorcism doesn't break with these now well worn tricks of the format.

**

[Gorf King]

Hereafter

I did say recently that I'd try to post a more positive review after my recent lukewarm reaction to Senna. With the benefit of hindsight, I have to say I lied.

This confusing, confused tale of the afterlife has some promise at first, thanks to the reluctance of the psychic protagonist to profit from his supposed gift, and the feistiness of the French journaliste whose inherent scepticism you might think, or hope, could elicit some fireworks later in the proceedings when the two (inevitably) meet. Admittedly, those hopes are pretty much shot right from the beginning, the fuzzy shots of 'them dead people' warning that nothing more profound than the end of The Sixth Sense should be anticipated. What is genuinely unexpected is that the final quarter of the film should be quite so unutterably vapid. (Although I should have known better when the first of many dreadfully, inappropriately schmaltzy renditions of the Adagio from Rachmaninov's 2nd Piano Concerto made its first inflated, bilious way onto the soundtrack.)

Anyway, I persevered in hope of better things to come hereafter. But I'm afraid I could only believe this was an actual, living film rather than a psychotic hallucination up until the point at which

the bereaved lad skips his foster home to visit what appears to be the entire professional psychic population of London in one night, before narrowly avoiding death in a Tube bombing, assisted by the spirit of his dead twin. And then when immediately afterwards the hitherto intellectually brilliant, skeptical, rigorous French journaliste decides to skip the commissioned iconoclastic bio of François Mitterand to write a book entitled Hereafter: The Conspiracy Of Silence ('I realise it's not what you were expecting,' she explains to the proprietor of a political publishing house; 'you always said there weren't enough surprises in publishing!'), this film was, effectively, dead to me. And, try as I might, I couldn't summon its spirit back, nor work out what the hell it was supposed to be while it was still alive. Apart from an evil murderer of famous Russian composers.

Events then proceed through a series of unbelievable (or is it supernatural? No, it's just unbelievable) coincidences to unite the various strands in the increasingly poor excuse for a plot, before leading eventually to a chain of chance meetings so ludicrous it could only be explained by this film having the worst writing this side of a Michael Bay movie (or is it supernatural forces at work? No, it's just bad writing). And then there's more butchery of Rachmaninov, of journalism, of film directing. Hack, hack, hack. After all those cuts it's inevitable that in the end it just kinds of fall apart entirely and gives up on life, with some of the sloppiest character and plot writing I've ever seen in a film directed by the same man who made Unforgiven. I really can't explain how Eastwood made something quite this bad. I've even asked God, and he just shrugged and said 'shit happens,' before sticking another Fall LP on Heaven's jukebox and gobbing noisily and with future purpose on the CD of the soundtrack to Hereafter.

So that seems to be it. Shit happens. It certainly happened here.

[lordcookie]

It is a genuinely woeful film but at least my rental copy had the decency to skip the last ten minutes which I then had to read about online. If i'd sat through the end I think I probably would have exploded in a fit of rage and smashed up all my good Eastwood DVDs in protest.

[Sabreman]

I watched Senna the other day, and having not read up on it other than getting the gist that it was well-received (and not even reading the impressions in here) I have to say I'm with GK on this one. It seemed more to be a very light documentary on a short period of F1 than an insightful and deep look at an individual. I mean, we came into the story when he was just about to begin his F1 career. Where's the childhood? The Backstory? Even during the F1 years the only glimpse we get of anything other than racing career highlights is a brief mention that he did some charity work at home. Sure, the racing footage was excellent and brought back many memories (I was an avid F1 spectator who fell away from it in the few years following Senna's death) but there was nothing there to sink the teeth into, and I certainly don't feel I learned anything about the man.

[Padaxes]

I just watched Stakeland as well and was pleasantly surprised. It lies somewhere between The Road and Zombieland. There's not really much I can add to Lordcookies review. Worth a watch for sure.

[dug]

Sadly, no.

A shame. I shall probably be giving this one a miss then, as entertaining as it sounds...

[lordcookie]

Route Irish - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1528312/

The story of a private security contractor in Iraq who rejected the official explanation of his friend's death and sets out to discover the truth.

It is hard to know what this film is aiming for, whether it is yet another liberal film criticising the handling of the Iraq war or a more standard revenge thriller but either way you view the film it never quite works. The big problem is in the execution both in front and behind the camera. Ken Loach is a good director but I can't help be disappointed in his last few films (and that includes both Looking for Eric and The Wind that Shakes the Barley) but this is by far his weakest in a good long while. The direction is flat, it looks cheap and the film just doesn't have any urgency. The script is incredibly clunky with lots of dully expressed exposition and little sense of character or place. Even the performances, something you can normally rely on in a Loach picture, are shoddy. Womack is a solid supporting actor but here he relies on his ability to shout and little else. Disappointingly the rest of the cast aren't any better but maybe they were hampered by the leaden script. Meh.

* 1/2

Tracker - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1414378/

An Afrikaner veteran of the Boer War has just immigrated to New Zealand and is hired to track a man accused of killing a soldier. While hunting through the countryside he captures his fugitive, only to learn that he's innocent of the crime. When faced with the life changing decision to turn him in or set him free only one man will walk away alive.

I was hoping for a Ray Winstone VS Jango Fett cat and mouse thriller but instead we get an uneasy and unconvincing buddy movie. It looks pretty enough, arguably too pretty and glossy as it resembles a Sunday evening BBC period drama, but it is listless and flat and fails to get the blood pumping. It is just far too restrained and respectable which results in neutering potentially compelling characters. Winstone's accent is patchy at best as he struggles to keep his cockney twang in check but on the whole both leads do a solid enough job. It is just disappointing they aren't acting in a more interesting film, or at least one with a little grit and fire in its belly. The music is terribly overblown and obvious too killing a lot of potentially interesting scenes.

**

Mr. Nobody - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0485947/

A tale that spans different time zones of the 20th and 21st centuries.

What should have been an interesting drama with sci-fi elements actually ended up being a rather frustrating experience for me as I was constantly reminded of the sources it cribbed from. The big reference is undoubtedly Staughterhouse-Five but it seems to copy a number of films practically verbatim (one of the key relationships involving step siblings is so close to Lovers of the Article Circle that it could be done for plagiarism). Rather than get swept away by the story I was taken out of it by all these obvious references and I'm not sure that is a failing of the film or just a flaw in the way my brain works. Although the film deals with big themes such as time, choice, reality and destiny it is far simpler than the obfuscating format would have you believe. Yes, it looks very good using a number of different styles and the performances are universally strong but for all its narrative ambitions it is reliant on truisms and cliché rather than anything insightful or thought provoking (or maybe that is the point). As a film it is at least a memorable experience that manages to hold your attention for two and a half hours but sadly it never quite delivers on its promises.

** 1/2

[Padaxes]

Seraphim Falls

An interesting film that wasn't at all what I expected. It starts off with shades of a western Rambo but becomes a battle of wills between the two protagonists. And although slow paced it kept my attention by building tension and moral ambiguity between the characters then develops a surreal quality towards the end with some nice symbolism. The scenery and cinematography are both impressive and the performances hold up pretty well. All in all a solid film that i'm surprised passed me by when it was released, just happened to notice it was available to stream with my Lovefilm package so watched it on a whim.

I would recommend it even if you aren't a fan of westerns.

[redbloodcell]

Another positive from me for Stake Land, really enjoyed it and thought the story struck the balance between hopeful and bleak very effectively which made it genuinely involving.

[Steve McQueef]

I enjoyed Stake Land, much more than I thought I would, with only

the leader of The Brotherhood going super-vamp slightly ruining it.

The initial attack on Martin's family, that creeped me out big time, especially what happens to the baby.

[larrydavidsanger]

Seraphim Falls

An interesting film that wasn't at all what I expected. It starts off with shades of a western Rambo but becomes a battle of wills between the two protagonists. And although slow paced it kept my attention by building tension and moral ambiguity between the characters then develops a surreal quality towards the end with some nice symbolism. The scenery and cinematography are both impressive and the performances hold up pretty well. All in all a solid film that i'm surprised passed me by when it was released, just happened to notice it was available to stream with my Lovefilm package so watched it on a whim.

I would recommend it even if you aren't a fan of westerns.

I saw that in the cinema having known nothing about it before hand, I remember it being very enjoyable. I'd completely forgotten about it til now, must give it another watch.

[Padaxes]

I agree 100% sky captain that was the films main weak point, if it had just been a random mutant it would have been scarier and less contrived.

[lordcookie]

George Harrison: Living in a Material World - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1113829/

Inter-cut with archive material, friends, family and associates of the musician tell the story of his life and how spirituality became such a major part of it.

I should probably make it clear from the outset that I don't like the music of George Harrison. My parents regularly played his solo stuff when I was growing up and I really struggle to listen to it now. No doubt this stance has clouded my opinion of this film but even trying to be a little impartial I am struggling to see quite why this has been garnering such high praise. Considering his long career it is unsurprising that this would be a long documentary (around three and a half hours) but what was surprising was how little real information about the man was given. There were lots of anecdotes but not many that really illuminated the man and frankly it took a long time to say very little. Although I grew up with his music I didn't know a great deal about him as a person but there was absolutely nothing in this documentary that I didn't know already which was disappointing. The interviews were pretty dull with a number of people more interested in talking about themselves than George and even the archival footage wasn't particularly engaging.

**

The Tripper - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0760187/

A Ronald Reagan-obsessed serial killer targets a bunch of hippies who are heading to a weekend-long concert.

This directorial debut by David Arquette doesn't bode well for his career behind the camera. For a cheap and cheerful slasher flick he has amassed a decent cast with the likes of Thomas Jane, Lukas Haas and Jason Mewes (basically playing himself, again) and they all do a fairly decent job but Arquette's directing is amateurish at best and the plot isn't much cop either. Maybe Arquette was trying to make it look bad (it fits with the direct to DVD story) but you'd think he'd have a little bit more flair than demonstrated here. As for the story, well it is a basic slasher story about (old) teens getting offer by a serial killer, but the less than subtle political references and gags fall flat every time and it takes too long to get to the kills. The kills themselves are poor with some ropey effects (the latter I quite liked as it added an old school charm and was pleasingly devoid of CGI) but their biggest problem is that nearly all of them are committed off camera which is a big sin in a slasher film because that is practically the only reason you/I watch them.

* 1/2

The Adventures of Tintin - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0983193/

Tintin and Captain Haddock set off on a treasure hunt for a sunken ship commanded by Haddock's ancestor. But someone else is in search of the ship.

Barring the odd episode of the early '90s TV series I have no childhood connection to the stories of Tintin so I'm coming to the film with a fresh set of eyes and to be honest I wasn't overly keen on what I saw. The film starts strongly with an entertaining and kinetic title sequence which leads into a really neat introduction of the title character. The animation/motion capture is equally impressive with stunning lighting, a roving camera and subtle facial expressions (this is as far from the dead eye films Zemeckis peddled for years) all bringing the world to life and helped by being full of wonderful little film nods (the Jaws reference works particularly well) and clever scene transitions. But for all its visual sheen I found it a terribly soulless experience. Tintin has always been a blank canvas for the audience to project onto but here I'm not sure that really works as he becomes a character you just don't care about, at all (and this is certainly not helped by a flat performance from Jamie Bell). At least Captain Haddock is around to provide the main focus and drive for the story and here the writers and Serkis do a good job of bringing him to life. The rest of the cast however are a mixture of the forgettable and the annoying (Thomson and Thompson) with most of their slapstick falling flat.

The big problem I have with the film though is the story and the way it is played out on screen. In many ways it reminds me more of a computer game than a film with a very rigid stop-start structure with clumsy exposition, often just dully said by Tintin (whatever happened to show don't tell?), leading into a chase sequence. It really was like a story cutscene followed by the interactive game element. The action sequences, whilst frequently inventive, were strangely weightless and lacking in 'something'. There is a very impressive setpiece towards the end of the film that is huge in scale and full of novel little touches but it totally failed to move or excite me and I can't quite put my finger on why these sequences did nothing for me. There is so much happening on screen and it moves at such a pace but without being able to engage with the characters or story it ended up feeling like a real drag.

I don't doubt the film will have far more fans on this forum than detractors but sadly I was left disappointed and unsatisfied.

**

[kerraig UK]

I too enjoyed Stakeland. And Cookie, I made the Trailer for The Tracker!

[lordcookie]

Having just watched the trailer I can safely say it was better than the finished film.

[lordcookie]

The Dead - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1386925/

After a plane crash in the middle of Africa, an American mercenary is the sole survivor and has to battle against the walking dead with only a local military man searching for his son as his only company and help.

It is pleasing to see a zombie film both with new ideas and bringing back older elements that have been sidelined by most modern films in the sub-genre (such as the shuffling and slow moving zombie). The Dead is certainly one of the best looking low budget zombie films I've seen in a long time. The barren African setting looks both beautiful and dangerous with the red earth appearing as if it is permanently soaked in blood. This might not be an expensive film but it looks far from cheap and that even extends to the surprisingly effective CGI effects (pleasingly there are plenty of practical elements too).

The Ford Brothers create an interesting and consistently tense atmosphere as the unlikely allies try and make their way across the hostile country. They get a lot right with the film but the film still has some fundamental issues that hold it back from being a true great in the genre. Ignoring the rather clunky themes of tolerance the film is very basic. The story always moves forward but it is little more than a series of mini-encounters with the undead in slightly different locations. The directors do manage to wring tension out of these scenes but it lacks the meat in-between these moments so you can really care for these characters. There are only really two characters in the film but even these are afforded little genuine development. It doesn't help that neither of them are really tested beyond their obvious predicament. Whenever some major obstacle or problem gets in their way an easy solution comes by all too readily meaning the drama is neutered and the characters left untested. For fans of zombies it is well worth watching but for others the lack of characterisation may be an issue.

***

Tucker and Dale vs Evil - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1465522/

Tucker & Dale are on vacation at their dilapidated mountain cabin when they are attacked by a group of preppy college kids.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil is consistently amusing and surprisingly warm hearted horror comedy film that will no doubt find a growing cult following. The film does a good job of subverting the Hillbilly slasher sub-genre by both lovingly referencing them and poking fun at its more absurd elements. Although no doubt billed as a horror comedy this is very much a comedy and for the most part the film hits its mark. The escalation of the bloody slapstick is handled well and although all the events in the film are downright ridiculous the characters are pleasingly well developed. For all the amusing moments of gruesome deaths the real appeal is the humour and warmth in the central relationship between Tucker, Dale and college student, Allison. The films plays with the Hillbilly stereotype but doesn't look down on the characters of Tucker and Dale as both are unlucky but not necessarily stupid. The budding romance is sweet and nicely played by Tyler Labine and Katrina Bowden and provides the real heart of the film. At only 80 odd minutes the film is the perfect length for such a story and whilst it might not satisfy those hoping for a proper horror film it should more than entertain those that just want a good time.

*** 1/2

Cedar Rapids - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1477837/

Tim Lippe has no idea what he's in for when he's sent to Cedar Rapids, Iowa to represent his company at an annual insurance convention, where he soon finds himself under the "guidance" of three convention veterans.

Cedar Rapids is an amiable and occasionally hilarious comedy that manages to juggle warm hearted character moments with more crass gags. In many ways it reminds me of the Australian film, Kenny, both being centered around industry conferences/trade shows and with naive but loveable lead characters. Cedar Rapids can't quite compete with Kenny either in the gag to hit rate ratio or the rounded and sympathetic characters but it still has its heart in the right place and is far more charming than the films produced by Apatow. Ed Helms plays the fish-out-of-water lead with his usual charm. Whilst he is the heart of the film he isn't the source of most of the humour as that is reserved for the more outrageous support from the likes of John C Reilly and Anne Heche, demonstrating a talent for comedy she hasn't really demonstrated before. Thankfully even these broader comic relief characters are still afforded development which is impressive in a film under 90 minutes. Whilst it is hard to see it living a long time in the memory whilst it lasts it is consistently entertaining and funny enough to hold your attention.

***

[Treble]

George Harrison: Living in a Material World - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1113829/

Inter-cut with archive material, friends, family and associates of the musician tell the story of his life and how spirituality became such a major part of it.

I should probably make it clear from the outset that I don't like the music of George Harrison. My parents regularly played his solo stuff when I was growing up and I really struggle to listen to it now. No doubt this stance has clouded my opinion of this film but even trying to be a little impartial I am struggling to see quite why this has been garnering such high praise. Considering his long career it is unsurprising that this would be a long documentary (around three and a half hours) but what was surprising was how little real information about the man was given. There were lots of anecdotes but not many that really illuminated the man and frankly it took a long time to say very little. Although I grew up with his music I didn't know a great deal about him as a person but there was absolutely nothing in this documentary that I didn't know already which was disappointing. The interviews were pretty dull with a number of people more interested in talking about themselves than George and even the archival footage wasn't particularly engaging.

**

Was there much about his friendship with the Pythons? Obviously there's the Handmade connection, plus he was really close to Eric Idle and Michael Palin. I'm a bit of a Palin obsessive so it would be cool if there's some of that in there.

[Padaxes]

I quite enjoyed Cedar Rapids as well. Funnier than I expected, a few stupid bits but on the whole pretty amusing.

I skipped "The Dead" as it sounded a bit crappy, but Ill give it a go no. I'm currently in the midst of a zombie fest anyway. Just finished the first season of walking dead and am playing through Dead Island. Bring on the brains!

[lordcookie]

Was there much about his friendship with the Pythons? Obviously there's the Handmade connection, plus he was really close to Eric Idle and Michael Palin. I'm a bit of a Palin obsessive so it would be cool if there's some of that in there.

They get a reasonable chunk although nothing that you probably don't know about already.

[lordcookie]

Paranormal Activity 2 - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1536044/

After experiencing what they think are a series of "break-ins", a family sets up security cameras around their home, only to realize that the events unfolding before them are more sinister than they seem.

The original Paranormal Activity had its moments but on the whole the film failed to live up to the marketing, instead relying on a lot of loud noises to get the audience jumping rather than building an interesting and creepy atmosphere. Unsurprisingly Paranormal Activity 2 continues this formula, and in truth when these low budget films are making so much money who can blame them. However, the sequel not only suffers from the same problems but the overly familiar set-up dulls any of the creepier moments (being dragged out of a room by an unknown force worked in the first but less so here because you've seen it before). They do tie the two stories together surprisingly well and it still has the odd moments that prove successful but when you know what to expect and how it is going to try and scare you the impact is greatly reduced. And once again the ending is pretty bad, going for the easiest and least scary option.

**

Night of the Demons - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1268809/

A group of kids go to a Halloween party, only to have to face down a group of demons.

Let's be honest, the original 1988 Night of the Demons was far from a classic but it did have a certain low budget charm. This remake, which bizarrely does away with the more interesting set-up of the original film, has a better and more attractive cast but is significantly lacking in the charm department. The film stars a bunch of no name actors with a sprinkling of faded stars (Edward Furlong and Shannon Elizabeth) and in truth they all do an okay job with an undemanding and poor script. Likewise the effects are reasonably competent with some novel and bloody sequences helping make sure the film isn't a total waste of time. Sadly the film itself isn't actually scary (which is a pretty big problem for a horror movie) and the humour regularly falls flat unless you enjoy laughing at the absurd lack of logic from the people trapped in the house (I don't think I've ever seen such a lame excuse for being trapped in a location before). So whilst it isn't the worst horror remake in the world it isn't one that you could recommend either.

* 1/2

Africa United - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1429313/

The extraordinary story of three Rwandan kids who walk 3000 miles to the Soccer World Cup in South Africa. Using a sack load of ingenuity and sass (and a World Cup wall chart for a map), our pint-sized protagonists set off through the endless horizons of Africa in pursuit of an unlikely dream. And as they walk they gather a tribe - a ragamuffin team - of broken and brilliant characters who help them negotiate a way through a series of glorious, dangerous, hilarious and often bizarre situations. Through these kids, we will encounter an Africa few people ever get to see; experience the hard reality of an epic walk through seven countries; as well as the joy, laughter and hope - 'the ubuntu' - that comes from making an incredible journey together.

This film troubles me a little; on the one hand it is a charming magical realist family adventure film centred on well developed characters and their mammoth quest, yet it deals with big important issues in rather pat and superficial ways. Clearly the South African World Cup is used as a symbol of hope for the entire continent and I have no problem with that but the film does a whistle stop tour of Africa's biggest troubles (AIDS, famine, sex trafficking, child soldiers, genocide etc.) as if football could hopefully be the answer. Of course this is a family fillm so to expect these issues to be dealt with in any meaningful way is probably unrealistic but some subtlety would have been welcome. Aside from this rather big issue the film gets a lot right. The central characters are all great, they have spark and personality and played to perfection by the inexperienced cast. The animated flourishes also work well and have a unique style whilst the story pulls you into their world and hope they eventually get to the World Cup. Its charms do outweigh the problems so is probably worth a watch if you are able to look past the glossed over wider context of the story.

** 1/2

[Treble]

They get a reasonable chunk although nothing that you probably don't know about already.

Thanks, will stay away then.

The original Paranormal Activity had its moments but on the whole the film failed to live up to the marketing, instead relying on a lot of loud noises to get the audience jumping rather than building an interesting and creepy atmosphere

I'm quite surprised about this opinion. I thought the original was all atmosphere, and made you tense and scared with the smallest things: doors quietly swinging open on their hinges, bed covers gently being pulled back over sleeping bodies, inexplicable footprints on the floor. To be honest, it was only the end I thought poor - the rest I found to be a total success. Four stars from me.

Anyway, to make this post not totally pointless:

-------------

Captain America: The First Avenger

IMDB

After being deemed unfit for military service, Steve Rogers volunteers for a top secret research project that turns him into Captain America, a superhero dedicated to defending America's ideals.

After the disappointment of the overrated Thor, and studioulsy avoiding the flag-waving comic book for my entire life (I wouldn't even select him in the Capcom figthing games, I hated his image so much) I settled down to this with some trepidation. I've said so that often lately it's gonna get written on my tombstone, isn't it?

But in fact, the film's a success (although not a total joy). I assume they've taken the comic origin and twisted and expanded it to add complexity, because my impression was that he was a propagandist tool. Which, in a way, he is in the film. However, the script cleverly interweaves modern notions and conceptions of heroism into the plot, so when the super soldier experiment is a failure the costume is part of a marketing exercise to give a hunk of physical perfection - who nevertheless has never seen combat - a place in the world and a part in the war.

I won't go on and on about the origin because it's not a complex film, but suffice to say that Chris Evans is every inch the hero, being shown as just as upstanding, kind, self-deprecating and heroic as a skinny weed as he is when he's an adonis figure. So the plot's decent in the origin stakes and, although the source of baddie Red Skull's power - the Tesseract - is deliberately left vague (I suspect they want to leave it open as a power source to use in an Avengers movie) the story has a point and a purpose - even the 'love interest' is a well-written character who doesn't get by simply by virtue of being a hottie.

The problem the film has is Joe Johnson (ex-Embassy World champion. . Sorry, I always think of that bloke when I see the director's name). He can't do action 'right', god bless him. He either cuts away too soon, or holds the shot too long, or frames the impacts off to the left or extreme right of shot, or uses practical effects when he should have gone with CGI (or more often, vice-versa)... basically, he just gets it wrong all over the place. So although the film has a lot of action scenes, they are almost all totally forgettable, with the climactic battle with Red Skull having the fighting prowess of a drunken pub car park brawl.

So it lacks punch but has an origin story diametrically opposite to - and the equal of - Batman's in Begins, and does the nigh-on impossible: takes a character reviled by many for his inherent jingoism and lack of sophistication, and turns him into a likeable, believeable and genuine hero. They better use him well in The Avengers; Chris Evans has earned the right.

***

Postscript: I've just noticed the IMDB synopsis properly, "...a superhero dedicated to defending America's ideals". What's also excellent about the film is that it has lots of heroes from all the Allied nations fighting together (even a German scientist who succinctly explains the difference between a German and a Nazi without being patronising) and treats them all with equal respect. It was far from the wall-to-wall stars 'n' bars, America-won-the-war revisionism I was expecting.

[Steve McQueef]

The problem the film has is Joe Johnson. He can't do action 'right', god bless him. He either cuts away too soon, or holds the shot too long, or frames the impacts off to the left or extreme right of shot, or uses practical effects when he should have gone with CGI (or more often, vice-versa)... basically, he just gets it wrong all over the place. So although the film has a lot of action scenes, they are almost all totally forgettable, with the climactic battle with Red Skull having the fighting prowess of a drunken pub car park brawl.

That's the only part of that I agree with and I'm fairly forgiving to most of these Marvel efforts.

[lordcookie]

Romasanta: The Werewolf Hunt - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0374180/

An uproar is caused when some mutilated cadavers are discovered, giving way to the legend of the "Werewolf of Allariz". A traveling vendor rolls through the forest in his old wagon. A woman from every village on his route faithfully awaits him. He's attractive, intelligent, charming.... But he's also the monster feared by all. His most recent prey, Barbara will soon become the one who hunts him down. The film is based on the true-life story of Manuel Blanco Romasanta, the traveling vendor, who confessed to the murders of thirteen people, using their body fat to make soap. Romasanta was tried in Allaríz in 1852 and avoided capital punishment by proclaiming he was a werewolf. Barbara was the lone survivor of four sisters.

Although based on the true Romasanta murders it uses the events and then plays the werewolf alibi as potentially true. The film is directed by Paco Plaza, the co-director of the [REC] series (although I think his directing partner, Jaume Balagueró, is the more talented of the two) and stars Boxing Helena's Julian Sands and the beautiful Elsa Pataky (last seen in Fast Five). The story has potential, especially the way it blends grim fact with supernatural fiction, but a number of things conspire against it. The decision to dub Pataky and a number of othe actors doesn't help when trying to create a foreboding mood. It is something that doesn't tend to bother me in giallo pictures but they are normally so over the top the poor dub often adds to the appeal. Yet Romasanta is a little more grounded and the dubbing and generally poor acting only hampers the atmosphere. Although the body count is high the pacing seems to drag, probably not helped by the insistence to keep whether he is a werewolf or not a secret. Ambiguity is normally an effective tool in horror but because the characters are so plainly realised the desire to keep the werewolf off the screen actually just makes the whole experience rather dull.

* 1/2

Marmaduke - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1392197/

A suburban family moves to a new neighborhood with their large yet lovable Great Dane, who has a tendency to wreak havoc in his own oblivious way.

Oh dear, from the trailers it looked awful and the film still failed to live up to the very low expectations. Modern live action movies with talking animals are among some of the worst children's films around (Beverly Hills Chihuahua and Cats & Dogs 2 spring to mind) but Marmaduke is certainly up there too. Ignoring the dull as dishwater story, the poor jokes and annoying characters one of the biggest problems is Owen Wilson. Marmaduke never shuts up and Wilsons' vocal work is atrocious. It shouldn't be too difficult to make a dog a sympathetic lead character but every time he was on screen I was hoping he'd wander into the path of oncoming traffic. At least the film is short but it still feels 80 minutes too long.

*

Going the Distance - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1322312/

A romantic comedy centered on a guy and a gal who try to keep their love alive as they shuttle back and forth between New York and San Francisco to see one another.

Well this was a surprise and for once it was of the pleasant variety. Typically I hate Hollywood romantic comedies, they are full of detestable characters with dubious priorities and the stories are reliant on cliché and sugar coated sentiment. This is exactly what I was expecting with Going the Distance yet what I got was a far more grounded and authentic romantic comedy. Don't get me wrong, it still drifts into romcom territory with the broadly comedic friends but it gets a lot right.

Firstly the characters are earthy and believable with Drew Barrymore and Justin Long having a genuine and easy chemistry (hardly surprising given they were in an off-screen relationship at the time). Normally the lead female would either be neurotic or the perfect woman^TM yet here she has very clear faults without them feeling manufactured. You actually want to see the relationship work and I can't remember the last romcom that has happened with. Even the comedy buddies are surprisingly amusing without feeling as if they are only there to help fulfill the 'com' quota. The relationship obviously hits its fair share of problems but they are all fairly believable and clearly the film is comfortable in letting the characters sell the film rather than putting them in increasingly unrealistic situations. Even the end is sweetly judged rather than the mawkish overblown bullshit the genre normally craps out.

As a word of caution I do not want to oversell the film, it's not perfect but it is a cut above the competition.

***

[Steve McQueef]

I'm still having counselling for Marmaduke.

[Monkeyboy]

The Dead - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1386925/

After a plane crash in the middle of Africa, an American mercenary is the sole survivor and has to battle against the walking dead with only a local military man searching for his son as his only company and help.

It is pleasing to see a zombie film both with new ideas and bringing back older elements that have been sidelined by most modern films in the sub-genre (such as the shuffling and slow moving zombie). The Dead is certainly one of the best looking low budget zombie films I've seen in a long time. The barren African setting looks both beautiful and dangerous with the red earth appearing as if it is permanently soaked in blood. This might not be an expensive film but it looks far from cheap and that even extends to the surprisingly effective CGI effects (pleasingly there are plenty of practical elements too).

The Ford Brothers create an interesting and consistently tense atmosphere as the unlikely allies try and make their way across the hostile country. They get a lot right with the film but the film still has some fundamental issues that hold it back from being a true great in the genre. Ignoring the rather clunky themes of tolerance the film is very basic. The story always moves forward but it is little more than a series of mini-encounters with the undead in slightly different locations. The directors do manage to wring tension out of these scenes but it lacks the meat in-between these moments so you can really care for these characters. There are only really two characters in the film but even these are afforded little genuine development. It doesn't help that neither of them are really tested beyond their obvious predicament. Whenever some major obstacle or problem gets in their way an easy solution comes by all too readily meaning the drama is neutered and the characters left untested. For fans of zombies it is well worth watching but for others the lack of characterisation may be an issue.

***

Watched this today, and I think whilst it dragged a bit in the middle, it got better again towards the end.

Ending spoiler...

I really loved the shot of him arriving in the camp, dressed head to toe in black, assault rifle in one hand, and machete in the other. To the people in the camp seeing him for the first time, you could sense the awe. We knew him as a pretty normal guy, but as first impressions go, for them he must've seemed like some badass wasteland zombie hunter.

[Nick R]

After the disappointment of the overrated Thor, and studioulsy avoiding the flag-waving comic book for my entire life (I wouldn't even select him in the Capcom figthing games, I hated his image so much) I settled down to this with some trepidation. I've said so that often lately it's gonna get written on my tombstone, isn't it?

But in fact, the film's a success (although not a total joy). I assume they've taken the comic origin and twisted and expanded it to add complexity, because my impression was that he was a propagandist tool.

This seems to be a common misconception about what the character's like. In most of the comics I've read featuring him, he's a character who - in between punching supervillains - often has doubts about his country. Even the right-wing Frank Miller portrayed him that way in Daredevil: Born Again (although that was back in the 80s, so perhaps if Miller was to write a post-9/11 Captain America comic it really would live up to the flag-waving stereotype...).

[lordcookie]

The Tree of Life - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0478304/

The story centers around a family with three boys in the 1950s. The eldest son witnesses the loss of innocence.

How do you review a film like The Tree of Life? In fact is there any point as an individuals connection to the film is so unique to that person that critical evaluation is redundant? It is certainly easy to see how this has been such a divisive film and whilst it is still swimming around in my head I'm struggling to know which side of the fence I sit. It is clear that the film can not be judged by traditional drama terms. There is little semblance of a conventional story, characters are tools for metaphor rather than believable human beings and it has such higher aspirations that it can almost overwhelm. It is also a personal story for Malick (in many ways sharing the fragmentary memories and autobiographical qualities of Tarkovsky's masterpiece, The Mirror) and, as is often the way, the more personal it is the more universal it becomes. Yet his ambitions are greater than just illustrating an eternal struggle through this1950s family. Instead he shows us creation itself and as beautiful as these scenes are (and they really are awe inspiring) to me they added little that was not already expressed through the push and pull of the family.

There is little need to dwell on the breathtaking cinematography (you really won't find a more striking film all year), the stunning score and faultless performances. Where my conflict lies with the film is its unexpected emotional distance. The central conflict the eldest brother deals with, that of grace (his mother) versus nature (his father), is universal but because Malick uses character purely as metaphor there are no grey areas to these people. Yes, the film is poetic and you can project yourself onto the family but the broadness also kept me from emotionally connecting to them or the events. Even when viewed through the rose-tinted memories of her son the mother is too perfect, too much of a thematic device to feel anything towards and all but the eldest son suffer similar fates. I can see why this film was an almost transcendental experience for some, and I wish I was able to go with the film and experience it too, but I was constantly aware of Malick's guiding hand. The climax in particular felt like he was pushing the profundity of the film on me. It is a beautifully edited sequence but heavy handed and lacking the lyricism and simplicity of the films most successful moments.

Reading the above paragraphs back makes me think I've probably written a lot of crap (I know, what's new) and perhaps I should have waited a week before attempting to articulate my feelings about a film I can admire but not love.

*** 1/2

Crawlspace - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090881/

A man who runs an apartment house for women is the demented son of a Nazi surgeon who has the house equipped with secret passageways, hidden rooms and torture and murder devices.

A film with Klaus Kinski playing a murdering Nazi landlord should be great but even though Kinski is always watchable the film itself falls flat. In many ways it reminded me of a more innocent and gentle version of Saw with the evil but strangely cuddly landlord setting traps to kill his tenants. Much like Saw though it also neglects one of the more overlooked element in a good horror film - characters. Beyond Kinski, who himself is hardly fleshed out beyond the mad scribbles in his diary discussing his father and his need to kill, none of the victims are given any real development at all. Even when they do meet their sticky end the kills are disappointing and lacking in invention, especially considering they involve elaborate traps. Although occasionally amusing (deliberately so, thankfully) it is never scary and as such is hard to recommend as a horror film.

**

Almighty Thor - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1792794/

When a demon god steals the Hammer of Invincibility, Thor strikes a mighty blow to get it back.

Hooray! Asylum Studios are back with another cheap movie knock-off. From the title alone it is pretty clear what they are copying this time but unlike most Asylum films there is pleasure to be had in the crappiness. Thor has a lisp, Kevin 'Big Daddy Cool' Nash plays Odin and Loki and Thor's climactic showdown involves them hitting each other with foam hammers as if they were competing in a Norse version of Mallett's Mallet. As we have come to expect from the studio the script is woeful, the acting worse and the special effects are 'special' indeed but there is fun to be had here. It might not be intentional but when they can't even normally make a fight between a mutant shark and octopus enjoyable this is definitely an improvement. However, there is still a really boring 70 minutes in the middle that you can probably fast forward through to save your sanity.

* (add an extra star for all the funny bits)