Funny People

In two days time Woody and Mainstream Ross will be coming over for my movie pick. I'm kind of torn. Do I go for something I'm pretty certain will impress or do I stick something random out there?

The front runner at the moment is Funny People. It's a movie I've already seen, but the other two haven't. Now, I could just say "you should check out Funny People" and hope they watch it independently, paving the way for us all to watch something new together. The problem with this is that Woody seems to have some sort of prejudice against Judd Apatow. Fair enough, his movies have a distinct feel and he isn't everybody's cup of tea. Ross may be more inclined to watch this, but still, I don't think he would.

The reason I'm keen for them both to see it, is that I'm pretty sure it isn't the movie they think it is. I mean, yeah it's got the "dick jokes" and plenty of toilet humour. It also has the Judd Apatow stamp all over it. The difference for me is the dark undertone to this movie, something that most of his stuff doesn't have.

Adam Sandler is playing a kind of caricature of himself. The opening scene is great too. As a long time fan of Sandler, it's great to get a peek into what drove his early humour. Rogen is great as the wannabe understudy and Jason Schwartzman is perfectly cast as the annoying hollywood asshole.

To be absolutely honest, I thought the cast was perfect. Leslie Mann did nothing for me as the love interest but I figure she wasn't supposed to really. She's slightly annoying and kind of gave e mixed feelings. Again, i feel this was intentional so job well done I guess.

Moving on, it feels like the second half of the movie takes us in a whole new direction. Once Eric Bana's character is introduced there's a new dimension to this. Personally, I love it. Any kind of betrayal, hurt, lies or other dark tones is right up my street. Not because I'm a bad person, but they induce such raw feelings. Feelings we may not experience in the day to day rat race.

So back to my point, I kind of want the to see the film and this seems like an opportune moment to do so. It's kind of a long film but well worth it.

My back up choices, should I waiver, are:

All The Real Girls

Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid (I can't believe I haven't seen this yet)

Anti Christ (Have no idea what this is other then it stars Willem Dafoe and goes 'way out there')

I'll be checking back in towards the end of the week with a snapshot of how it went.

Lastly, I want to do a little top 5 thing. I listen to some decent movie podcasts and it's something I enjoy listening to so though I'd jump on the bandwagon. As I'm British, I though I'd start with a Top 5 British Films. So here goes.

5. Trainspotting - What's not to like? Danny Boyle at his gritty best. Stunning performances from all. Shockingly truthful glimpse of a world I know all too well.

4. Notes On A Scandal - If you haven't seen this already it's an absolute must. Judy Dence at her absolute best. I never really understood the fuss about Dench until I saw this movie. It's raw, cringey and a ourney you have to go on.

3. Love Actually - Pretty mainstream but a good all rounder. It can be both happy and sad, cold and warm. An impressive soundtrack and an even more impressive cast. I'm sure you've all seen it anyway and will either agree or disagree with this being a great movie.

2. Shaun Of The Dead - A solid comedy. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost at their comedic best. Edgar Wright directs and gets every joke just right. The way the comedy is layered keeps me coming back again and again.

1. Closer - What can I say, my all time fave. Slick, stylish, powerfully emotional and ticks every box I have for a great drama.

So that's it for now. Have a think about your own top 5's. It's fun and you may dig out some gems of movies you've forgotten about.

Bye Bye

Not So Dizzy Heights

When you watch as many films as I do, you have to go out there and look for what to watch next. I generally look around IMDb, check out directors, writers and actors I like, then follow the links the their other works. It can lead to watching some real random stuff. Some good, some bad.

Some of the really random stuff I've come across, stuff that probably wouldn't have found me, turned out to be some of the best movies I've seen. All The Real Girls springs to mind. A small town story, focusing on the relationships of the people that live there. Very simple, but done in a way that the viewer can relate to. Some of the scenes reminded me of late summer nights back in my own home town. I felt both happy and sad, but foremost, nostalgic. Zooey Deschanel stars alongside an outstanding Paul Schneider. Go check it out f you haven't already(and don't watch the trailer).

So getting back on track, I was scouring the net, looking for a new film. I came across this film, Heights. The cast seemed ok. Elizabeth Banks, Glenn Close and James Marsden, to name a few. Box ticked. The summary seemed ok. Box ticked. What hooked me though, was the statement on the cover. "The movie I wanted Closer to be".

As Closer is my favourite movie, I though I'd give it a go. I didn't really expect Heights to be better, but if it was in the same vein, I was certain I'd like it. And to be honest, I did.

It hit a lot of the same notes as Closer. There was love, lust, lies and betrayal. The were some good characters(Glenn Close in particular). The obvious comparison to draw is the city based location, one in London, one in New York.

Where the films vastly differ, for me, is the attachment to the characters. Bluntly, there wasn't much. Yes, James Marsden's character is confused, troubled, in love/lust. Do I care? Not at all. Glenn Close appears trapped in a marriage of convenience. She flirts as a form of release. She interferes with her daughter's life. Again, I couldn't make a connection, she just wasn't a nice person.

Now, I'll pretty much watch any film once. I even managed to sit through Guus Van Sant's "Gerry". My girlfriend on the other hand, will fall asleep if the films aren't good. Now we do have different taste, so this barometer doesn't always work. But if the film is aimed at a mainstream audience and she manages to stay awake, then it's a good sign. Unfortunately she did fall asleep about the 1 hour mark, so take from that what you will.

All in all, I would suggest seeing this film. Just don't expect a masterpiece. It's a reasonable story, with a few surprises along the way.

Ta ta for now

Black Swan

As I previously mentioned, I watched Black Swan this week. I wanted to write a separate post as I don't think I'd do it justice in a paragraph.

Before I begin, it's worth mentioning what I knew about the film before I began watching.

1. It's about ballet!

2. It had received Golden Globe nominations.

3. It's stars Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis and Vincent Cassel

That was pretty much it. I was going in blind.

I made a conscious decision recently to stop watching trailers if I already knew I was going to watch a film. What do I have to gain aside from revealing the 1st act. If I'm already going to watch it, then why would I find out more?

Anyway, I'm watching Black Swan. I'm in bed with my girlfriend. I'm thinking the film is pretty good pre-sleep viewing. Visually good, nice soundtrack, nothing too heavy. This should put me in a nice mellow mood before my slumber begins. How wrong was I?

The film just turned on it's head. Surely this isn't right? Sinister, dark, eerie, haunting etc etc. "I am Jack's shock induced palpitating heart". Wow.

Ok, I don't want to narrate the story, if you've seen it, you know it. If you haven't why would I ruin it. I guess once the story had started to twist, I kinda knew where it was going, but enjoyed the journey nonetheless. Mila Kunis was great. Not Oscar great, but she delivered exactly what she was supposed to. Extremely sexy. Rough round the edges, as intended. A stark contract to Natalie Portman's cutesy little Mummy's Princess.

Portman's character was truly floored. A victim of a mother's obsession, ultimately becoming obsessed herself. I couldn't take my eyes off her for the entire film. I believe she got a Golden Globe for this performance and although there are mixed reviews for her in this role, I felt she was back at her Leon-esque best.

What in particular did I like about this movie? The music was haunting and extremely atmospheric. I was interested in the characters from the get go. I was sucked in. I wanted to find out more. The plot developed nicely and like the music, the suspense built up, right to the end. I was captivated, front to back. No lull's.

All in all, one of my favourite movies in a long time. Go see it if you haven't. If you have seen it, then watch it again.

I'm out.

Movie Nights Begin

It's been 4 or 5 days since me and my friends kicked off our movie night season. The first to host was my friend Woody. The film of choice was City Of Lost Children.

I'd hadn't previously heard of the movie so I was slightly dubious. Ron Perlman in a starring roll also had me unsure as to whether or not this would be any good. After a quick nosey on IMDB I saw that there was a great production team behind the film. Due to the film being French, I was particularly interested to see that one of the two directors was of Amelie fame.

So we sit, with our pizza and get set for the main event. My other friend, who we shall refer to as Mainstream Ross, had taken command with the remote control. He presses play.

So I sit, watching and immediately begin to get agitated as I notice the film is set up, by Mainstream Ross, with badly dubbed English. Before the film had started I had said to Mainstream Ross, "check it's on subtitled and not dubbed". From experience I know that he prefers dubbed to subtitles so I let it ride. Woody shortly comes to my rescue by mentioning the laughable Cockney accents. We change to subtitles.

So we're ten minutes in and I'm not enjoying it. I wonder if it will getter better now the dubbing has gone. It doesn't. For the most part, I'm trying my hardest to stay focused on the film. I just don't feel a strong enough plot developing to keep me interested.

The film is certainly interesting to look at. It has a very unique feel. Strangely it feels like an old fashioned future world, masked in a greeny-brown haze. It has a very stage/theatre like feel to it, but it works. So visually, in my opinion, it's done it's job.

In terms of story, to sum up, poor. The plot developed so, so slow. Even after the story gathered momentum, I didn't connect with or care for any of the characters. I didn't buy into anybody emotionally, so the film for me gets a big thumbs down. Am I glad I watched this? Yes. I did take some things from the movie, just left me with a general 'style over substance' vibe.

Now this isn't a film review blog as such. Just my general ramblings on film. So I'm pretty much going to leave it there. As you've probably guessed, I wasn't a fan of this movie, therefore I don't feel like taking too much time to talk about it.

Aside from movie night, it's been a pretty busy week for me, movie-wise. Since my last post I've watch Post Grad, Black Swan, Let The Right One In, Saw 3d, Flight Of The Navigator, Wall-E and Home Alone 3. Not bad for 5 days eh?

Now the last three weren't through choice. I have a 5 year old daughter and my girlfriend has a 5 year old son. So weekends generally consist of this kind of movie. I have to say though, I kind of pushed Flight Of The Navigator on them. I loved this film as a kid, and they both loved it too. If you have kids younger than 10, then this is definitely worth picking up. Slightly dates but still, transports kids to a world where they fly a spaceship with cute aliens on board.

Wall-E, as you may well know, is amazing. But have you checked out the Pixar short 'Presto', located in the extra's. It's only a few minutes long but it never fails to make me and my daughter laugh. Post Grad isn't the greatest. Let the right one in is definitely worth a shot and last but not least, Black Swan.

Now I can't sum up Black Swan in a paragraph and I really need to get back to work now so I guess I'll put up a new blog about this one. In the meantime, check it out. It's worth all the hype. Guys, there's a special treat in there for you too.

Peace out for now.

Tonight? We make soap

So where do I start?

Recently, myself and two of my good friends decided to embark on a silver screen adventure. Long story short, every two weeks, one of us will host 'movie night'. The host picks a movie, we all watch, that's about it really.

So, being a total film nut, I decided I'd capture this journey in the form of a blog. I love talking about film and hearing others share their experience of them, it all seems to make sense. So I guess that sets the scene.

I'm sure as time goes on I'll paint an unwitting picture of my movie taste, but for now, I'll give a snapshot.

One of my all time favourites is Mike Nicholls' London based drama 'Closer'. Not to everybody's taste I'm sure, but somehow the raw emotion and witty dialogue just pulls me in. I'll probably take time out to break the film down in detail at some point.

I love a big budget, popcorn flick. Iron Man, Avatar and The Dark Knight are a few recent-ish examples that spring to mind. At face value, they're easy to watch, not too challenging and visually stunning. The fantasy aspect of these films appeals to me in a big way. They show you something you don't see every day. Places, people and possibilities that don't exist in the real world. Who doesn't wanna see that?

In contrast to these Hollywood monsters, I'm constantly looking out for a hidden gem. From the top of my head I'd say films like Juno, Flakes, Into the Wild and All the Real Girls. Aside from being excellent works, I feel that the Christopher Columbus in me enjoys the discovery aspect. Knowing that I've watched this movie through choice rather than swallowing a massive marketing pill.

Ok, I'll stop there. Brief, but a reasonable starting point. I intend to follow this up in a few days with a look at whatever I end up watching. I tend to watch 5 or so films a week. Some new, and some from my collection. So I guess I'll have plenty of material to work with.

If anybody at all happens to read this, be sure to check back in a few days.

Ciao for now.