Review: The Wolfman (2010) (Theatrical version)

Everything you could possibly want in a werewolf film!

It was everything i wanted it to be, and so much more.

I'll tell you what, i went in with the lowest expectations because i'd read a dozen or so reviews including the Empire one which bashed it, i thought it would suck and sat there ready to cuss it silly. But as soon as the Universal logo came up in black and white and the original's wolfsbane poem is shown to set the scene, i felt a tingle down my spine and got goosebumps, and i think "hell yes, this is going to be an old-fashioned traditional horror movie from the good old days". And i wasn't wrong in my opinion, it delivered in every respect.

Acting was awesome; Del Toro was great as the tragic Lawrence Talbot, Blunt was cool (and gorgeous) Weaving played an absolute badass but the real star was Anthony Hopkins who played his part really well; creepy, disturbing and twisted. Special effects were fantastic (kudos Rick Baker, again!)- make-up looked amazing and is the real star; you know it's a man in a costume but they made it look fantastic with lighting and atmosphere that you believe it's real. CGI also was used only when necessary (thankfully most of it is all practical effects!), the creature looked great on screen, movement and creature performance were brilliant, lots of care and attention to detail to make it like a proper wild beast. The visuals are AMAZING, everything is so stylish, moody and artistic- landscapes, atmosphere and scenery are dripping with beautiful Gothic grandeur, every scene was a piece of art. Story was engrossing from start to finish. Action sequences were BADASS, perfectly paced and choreographed (director Joe Johnston is very good at this and here he proves it yet again). The R rating really helped, they made the creature into a proper hardcore monster; ripping, gouging and mauling left right and centre; it was truly one to fear, and it really was as there's plenty of shocks and jump scares. Music was fantastic as usual by Danny Elfman.

To be honest, i can't find a single major thing wrong with the film as this is exactly what a werewolf film should be. Minor gripes are some CGI did look off, but i didn't care at all. This was a truly amazing film which harks back to the classic days of Gothic horror/ monster films, and an awesome remake that actually surpasses the original. The problems and delays with the film regarding production were non-existent to me, i really couldn't have realised that the film had so much stuff cut out. To me everything worked out great.

All in all, it's a fantastic creature feature, a superb high class Gothic horror flick but all in all- an awesome tribute to the classic horror films of the 30s/40s/50s/60s and 70s (it's got a very distinct "Hammer Horror" style, which I loved as i'm a huge fan of these, having grown up on them).

Of course, the film is a more character-driven drama (as it rightfully should be regarding the original), and a really well done one at that...but when the monster is unleashed, it does so in such a spectacular style you can't help but relish in the mayhem that ensues. Every scene with the creature was brilliant, and as a monster fan i was loving every second of it. A film by horror fans to horror fans. I enjoyed myself immensely and can't wait to see it again.

10/10. An instant classic. Werewolves are cool again and they're back with style!

Review: Creation (John Amiel, 2009)

Excellent performances and a touching story

Wow! Fantastic film in my opinion, i wasn't expecting it to be this good! I was captivated from start to finish- it's a very well made and educational film that really gives us a fascinating insight into the trials that Charles Darwin (Paul Bettany) had to go through in order to convey his ideas to the world, chronicling his life as he writes "Origin of the Species"; fighting both personal demons as well as the ignorant society of the time in order to do so. He struggles hard with his mind, body and soul as personal matters get to breaking point and even his family seems to slip away...whilst the rest of the world stand against him as he knows that his findings literally shake the very foundations of their lives, culture and meaning of existence. It's a subtle movie (not over-exaggerated in any way in that typical Hollywood way, this is a BBC produced British film) yet thankfully very powerful in meaning and this is thanks to the amazing well directed scenes as well as the superb acting by Bettany. Jennifer Connelly, (playing his wife Emma), acts as more of a light supporting role but I did enjoy her in this and she's as good as to be expected as always, her chemistry alongside her husband was definitely strong and endearing, you could feel the connection, and their real-life husband/wife bond definitely shines through their performances. But the star of the show is definitely Bettany and he does a brilliant job, a very touching performance- i both understood and sympathised with him as he battled his own degrading health and impending "insanity" to try to understand what he has uncovered and come to terms with what it all really is and means as he found his thinking contradict his feelings, and found himself losing it all including his wife who of course was a firm believer in religion and a strict Christian whilst he was in the realm of science, two worlds which could not see eye to eye, so their relationship was at stake too.

Anyway- a really very good, well acted emotional drama and dare I say I did shed a tear during the tragic climax which was truly heartbreaking as well as beautifully poignant and moving. The film is symbolic and very intellectually artistic as well, in fact i can't wait to watch it again as there was a lot to take in first time round which i missed. Easily one of the best films i've seen this year.

8/10

Review: Cloverfield (Matt Reeves, 2008)

An enjoyable and intense roller-coaster ride

A modern day take on the old-fashioned Godzilla monster movie, the film centres around a group of friends in New York trying to survive as some unknown entity attacks the city, all shot through one of the character's hand-held video camera. Whilst thoroughly entertaining I still had a few issues with the film.

It tries it's damn hardest to break barriers and not come across as a typical Hollywood movie (and I must admit, for the majority it achieves this) yet at times it still felt awfully predictable and cliché in that traditional Hollywood way. It sounds Hollywood and acts Hollywood, it just doesn't look it thanks to its innovative (yet some could argue unoriginal) use of a hand held camera held by one of the characters to show exactly what's going on. They, like us, have no idea, and we only know as much as them throughout the whole movie, which perfectly adds to the tension and suspense. The way things are revealed are done in a completely realistic way as well, which further add to the effect.

Writer JJ Abrahms, as he does with hit series Lost, keeps the tension flowing without giving anything away- there are no scientists who explain what is going and why, we, like the characters, are there for the ride. And once it starts, it is powerfully relentless and undeniably intense. Like I said before the film does suffer from its fair share of clichés (the cast ultimately come off as the cast of Friends stuck in a monster movie with at times dire and cringe worthy dialogue) but try to see passed it and enjoy the movie (alas I couldn't which made me write a whole other piece on this film where I rant on what I didn't like).

Whilst neither original or new in it's ideas and concepts (the catastrophes predominantly runs parallel to 9/11 and terrorist attacks which is the fear comes from as it all seems just a bit too real, and considering the whole movie is shot through a hand held camera is blatantly similar to the infamous and iconic footage we are all familiar with regarding the WTC attacks so for me this movie just came off as a blatant exercise in post-9/11 terrorist xenophobia just like Spielberg did with his War of the Worlds remake), it is still a very well made that is original in the way it is executed, which will keep you literally on the edge of your seat till the very last second. Shocks come thick and fast and there is suspense aplenty, all adding up to a very good nights worth of entertainment.

A somewhat unique though highly entertaining attempt at trying something new with the traditional "giant mosnter attacks city" Godzilla theme.

7/10

Review: Alice in Wonderland (Tim Burton, 2010)

All visuals, no heart and soul. A wasted premise.

What a fucking peice of shit.

Seriously, it was a complete mess. I don't know what the hell Tim Burton was thinking...it was all over the place, but most annoyingly- it was just so fucking boring! Absolutely nothing happens in it, there's no plot- it's just a series of random sequences joined together rather flimsily because Alice can't remember anything on her return to Wonderland (it's not based on the books, it's just Burton's own thing, acting as a semi-sequel to past events, very reminiscent of Spielberg's Hook from 1992, where a grown up Peter Pan can't remember anything about Neverland), all topped with a generic battle just to finish it off (one we have all seen a thousand times before done better, and one that wasn't needed in an Alice in Wonderland film at all, probably put in to compete with other recent fantasy films).

It's a completly wasted premise, it should have been amazing because the universe is fantastic, but it's all just thrown out the window in favour of visuals and nothing else. The design and costumes are of course stunning, simply outstanding work aesthetically all round but unfortunatly there's no atmosphere to work with it, it's like an empty fashion show, all green screen shallowness. The computer graphics were sadly weak (looked like very dated Dreamworks CG from 2001, think Shrek 1), the acting was completely bland (Mia who played Alice had one expression throughout the whole film and can't act at all, and I don't even know what the hell Depp was doing- it wasn't funny or inspiring, just a mess of a performance which was really sad considering he is normally good at everything he does. Really wrong direction and idea.). Best thing about it was Helena who is pretty good as the Queen of Hearts but's its a repetitive shtick that gets old after the first 5 minutes you see it, she basically does th same thing over and over. Even the music was generic and completely forgettable, it was just a few notes played over and over which sounded exactly like Pirates of the Caribbean, again very disappointing, Elfman failed here. There were also some other very cringe worthy moments where i had to turn away and face-palm hard....gosh, it really was bad.

All in all- it just wasn't entertaining- as a kid's movie it was boring and overlong and as an adult's film it was just bland and predictable. Only the colourful art and 3D saved it...but even then, it was nothing special, it's a glossy CGI extravaganza to cover up all the weaknesses and flaws. There's no magic, no heart, no soul. Burton has turned into George Lucas, and this is the proof.

This is definitely one of Tim's worst movies, I mean Planet of the Apes was bad but at least I enjoyed myself there becuase it was so dumb! Simply put, with all the talents involved, this was a poor film and a really wasted premise. I actually wanted to walk out half way as it was so boring. When it ended I exited the theatre just pissed off; pissed off at how much , though i did like the Avril Lavigne theme song at the end...yeah, when you come out of a movie praising the end credits and Avril Lavigne's song, you know something is very, very wrong.

Started off as an 8/10, then 7, then 6- but the last half and ending was so generic, i think its more than deserving of a 5/10, and that's just for the visuals. The worst thing is i went in with no expectations at all, and even then i was disappointed.

"Meh"- the one word i can describe this film with. A completely underwhelming, forgettable vision. A sad day for all Burton and Lewis Carrol fans.

Film Review: Avatar (James Cameron, 2009)

Well, what can I say? This is what cinema is all about.

Visually it is utterly spectacular, and worth the price of admission alone just to see a 3D movie done right. This time it wasn't a gimmick, this time it wasn't tacked on- this time it was for real- completely 100% immersive, I felt like I was in the movie with the actors, on Pandora- and that has never happened before at all with a film (other films all have layers which make it 3D, not here. Here it's all a seamless blend, it all works as one). It wasn't just things popping out at you, but you very much being there...and that has to be seen to be believed. All other 3D movies basically all look like sh!t compared to this one, because this is how it is done. You have never seen anything like this before.

As well as the 3D, it was the CGI- i know the term "photoreal" has been thrown about a lot regarding this film, but after seeing it on the big screen- i completely believed that it was all real. There were some things that looked off (mainly some creatures), but 95% of the time it was all seamless, you were just there, and you didn't scrutinise any of it. Pandora was stunning. Cameron has almost shot it like a nature documentary, and in that sense it is spectacular, just a completely plausible environment, it feels real and looks real. And in 3D- jaw dropping. And i'm not even going to go on about Pandora at night-time which again has to be seen to be believed, as the flora and fauna all give off a dazzling array of beautiful neon lights. The Na'vi are just incredible, and i'm not just talking about Jake and Neytiri- but every single one of them. They all have their individual personalities, they are all different; expressing emotion very clearly- and considering there are literally hundreds of them, this is no mean feat- but they nailed it here; I even tried to
study each and every one as much as I could to try and catch out some background one which didn't do anything (this usually happens with films with many CGI characters all at once)- but they ALL had soul, each was unique which is terrific attention to detail. Emotion capture- WOW. This, to me, was the best parts of the film- when Jake and Neytiri are just talking, interacting, it's jaw dropping, and the little things really stand out- they looked and acted like real beings, i could not get over that, i was speechless. I could watch that all day and still be amazed- i thought Gollum and Kong were amazing but this is just on another level entirely. And to keep that high standard up throughout the whole film was amazing (in LOTR Gollum's standard drops sometimes), but not here.

The visuals are impressive and easily the most groundbreaking aspect of the film

Story- yes, it's cliche. But it's gloriously, magnificently, entertainingly cliche. Yes, it's Dances with Wolves and FernGully, but they are just takes on the age old Pocahontas story (of which Disney also did), and here, Cameron is doing the tale again for the new generation to show us just how relevant it is right now in this present day and age; the complete history of human/western colonization in 3 hours- and it works, just as it always has done. Of course we've seen many of these things happen before in movies, but the way it is presented here is still darn entertaining, not to mention completely engrossing. Cameron may not be a great writer but he's a damn good storyteller- just watch how he executes scenes we have seen a million times before in a hard-hitting fresh new style. Scenes that, in the hands of a lesser director would be completely laughable and show up as lame, but in the hands of Cameron turn out to be amazingly well played, stunning to look at. Put on top of that the fantastic performances (especially Saldana, Lang and even Rodriguez) and you are literally enthralled, on the edge of your seat, in the zone.

Zoe Saldana gives an inspirational performance as Neytiri

Characters are memorable, and dialogue is too- i'm not going to bitch about duff lines or generic characters because I honestly did not have a problem with any of them- this is pure Hollywood cinema; it's not trying to be clever nor superior to the classic films we grew up on. People had the same problem with the lines/characters in Jurassic Park, Titanic- I didn't see a problem and unless you are looking to nitpick, you won't here either as it's of the same caliber. And if you know Cameron's movies you know what to expect- and let me tell you it's full of memorable lines that won't be quickly forgotten. I enjoyed all the talking here more than the actual action scenes, to be honest- simply because I loved the characters and how they played off each other.

Stephen Lang plays the memorable, though cliche, villain of the piece

Action scenes are unbelievably spectacular, done by a true master. When it kicks off, it really kicks off and all of a sudden you realise your brain has been corrupted by the crap you have forced to watch from Micheal Bay and Stephen Sommers, even George Lucas of recent years. Forget them. Their stuff does not even hold a candle here. What we get here is expertly paced, brilliantly choreographed and superbly directed action scenes that actually evoke real emotion. Not just "this is so damn cool", but sadness, awe-inspiring euphoria and a sense of overall beauty- as well as anger when the bad guys come into play. Not since Peter Jackson's Kong and LOTR have I been in awe of action scenes. I'm glad he can still deliver. Man, what a combination those two would make if they ever made a movie. And the fact that none of the CGI seems to faulter at all even where there is a ton of sh!t going on screen is another testament to how revolutionary this film is.

The star of the show is Pandora itself and it's jaw-dropping inhabitants- beautiful by day, but ny night takes a whole new appearance

All in all, it's a grand spectacle of a movie with a wonderfully simple but completely engrossing from start to finish. It's not perfect by any means, as I think it could have done with at least 45 minutes more just to flesh out backstories (Jake mainly) and even characters- but as it stands it's a fantastic cinematic experience overall. And it has to be seen in the cinema, because this is a movie done for that medium. It's not going to work at home, sadly, or if it does, it will be a completely cut-down experience. So everyone waiting for the DVD/Blu-Ray is at fault, because the are truly missing out on a new and original experience. Cameron said he wanted to make a film that would bring people back to the cinema and this is it. Believe me, his is totally it.

All manner of beasties live on this new world- so many in fact that an entire enclyclopedia was bought out for the film showcasing every detail!

Is it a classic film? Only time will tell. Is it perfect? Not so. But is it a revolutionary film in more ways than one, that will change the face of cinema technologically? Definitely, and in that respect Cameron delivered. I simply loved this film.

The original King Kong got dissed for story and acting etc when it was released too. But in time people saw how revolutionary it was, how it was a great example of just pure classic escapist cinema. Same with Jurassic Park. I think the same can be said with Avatar. A cinema experience you have to witness for yourself, as it will change it forever. Don't miss it!

So for now- I give the 3D version 10/10. It's what cinema is all about.

Notes: I've not yet seen the 2D one but I think the definitive way to watch this was 3D.

SPOILIER: (but not a plot one) One of my gripes is that I regret seeing any/all the featurettes, trailers and TV spots- because all of them put together make up at least 30-40% of the film! The first 1/2 hour or so is everything we've already scene via internet clips and whatnot...I was gutted. Oh well, next time