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I loved this. The story was great, but the graphics are what sold this for me. I know I'm a sucker for that sort of thing, but it really did blow me away.

I couldn't be bothered with 3D, but I go goosebumps several times from the sheer awe and scale of it all.

I can't really explain this all here, however I can say that I was very impressed. I would almost go as far to say best film of 2009 for me. I know I've not seen many, but that's not the point.

10/10. Truly epic.
 
peep said:
Just watched the French film, District 13 on lovely blu-ray.

LOVE IT. Such an epic film. I'm a big fan of parkour/free running and this film uses it to such an awesome level. I think the story is great too and very engaging. Why has it taken me so long to sit down and watch it? I have the sequel on blu-ray too, can't wait to watch it.

Rating: 5/5
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I agree what a fantastic film. Great storyline, acting and the action is amazing. I loved the fact that it was also set in some grotty area.

I finally got arounnd to seeing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory as it was on tv over Christmas and what a disappointment it was. One of the worst films I have ever seen. The whole film seemed a complete mess and what was up with all those songs the umpalumpas kept on singing. Usually I would like Johnny Depp in any film, but I thought he was awful in it.

Rating: 0/5
 
WOW! I finally manged to find time to watch what can only be described as the most beautiful film ever. American Beauty is simply a cinematic masterpiece.

It was oine of very few films that has left me speechless, and the only film I've evr seen where I have actually re-watched a scene just to marvel at it's cinematography and mise en scene.

I was guessing throughout, guess on person, then the next, and then the other person again...

Simply breathtaking.

10/10
 
So as I posted last night, saw Sherlock Holmes last night. Go see it. Its great. Robert was perfect for this part. I dunno why but Rachel McAdams looked great in this, probally because she looks like someone I know :) :s

The soundtrack is actually amazing! Hans Zimmer you are brilliant! ;)
 
Saw three films recently:

Last week I saw Avatar in 3D. Like everyone else, I was blown away by the sheer awe of it. AMAZING visuals, good storyline, the 3D was subtle and not too in your face which was good as well. I also felt emotionally attatched to the characters as well and I actually almost cried at one point, and I hardly ever cry in films.

10/10 definitely, best film of 2009 I reckon, one of my favourites.

On Tuesday night I watched Batman Begins. Having seen The Dark Knight already I was expecting something good and whilst it took me a while to get into the film, I thought it was a spectacular film. Awesome script and it was exciting to watch as well.

I'd give it a 9/10, I didn't really like the beginning much but I guess it was necessary to set up the rest of the film.

Earlier I watched Lesbian Vampire Killers because iTunes are giving it away free today. I think I can safely say it was one of, if not the worst film I've ever seen. Poorly made, the fat guy annoyed me so much, not funny in the slightest. Terrible storyline. I absolutely hated it. What was up with all the girls' accents in it as well? Absolutely terrible, EVEN worse than the Simpsons Movie.

A 1/10 at the best. Total ****ing garbage.
 
Just forced myself through The Princess and The Frog, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised.

It wasn't as **** as I gave it credit for. It had moments of hilarity and the soundtrack worked with what was provided on screen. But the period 40-80 minutes was a bit non-plus to the overall plot and had no real point.

So 6/10 - above average film and most certainly watchable, but for Disney - a poor effort. But at least my record for 100% viewing of Disney's Animated series continues :)

I can however say that it IS the best Disney animated feature since Bolt, but I'm not giving it any more credit than that. :p
 
Neal is incorrect ;)

It is not over here in the UK for several months, thus, you must have watched it illegally on your own accord, thus, not forcing yourself to watch it ;)

It is one of the films I'm looking forward to go see in 2010, mainly as we've been discussing it in Film Studies.
 
As I say, it's nothing special.

And yes, I DID force myself through it. I was thinking of my 100% record to get me by :p
 
Ciall, for once, has a very good point Mr Neal. I disapprove of illegally watching films, therefore your viewing of the film and view of it are not real, they do not exist.


I'm also not going to be making myself very popular with my next, and last, review of 2009. Yes, today I watched Alvin and the Chipmunks: The squeakquel.

Now, I didn't really want to see it but it was the only film I hadn't seen at the cinema (Nine and Have you met the Morgans? weren't showing till tomorrow). I also haven't seen the first film as I thought it looked dire. So, what did I think of it? Actually not that bad. It was watchable (apart from the uber-cringe moments, not a fan of those) and was great for kids. It's not great for adults but kids will definitely love it (explains why Ollie loves it so).

Rating: 3/5
 
I haven't saw Happy Gilmore in a while, so I decided.. hell.. why not?

As always.. reinforces the fact that it is one of my favorite movies of all time. While it may not be the best 'movie' ever, the one liners and moments from the movie will leave you quoting for hours. <3

10/10
 
SnooSnoo said:
I haven't saw Happy Gilmore in a while, so I decided.. hell.. why not?

As always.. reinforces the fact that it is one of my favorite movies of all time. While it may not be the best 'movie' ever, the one liners and moments from the movie will leave you quoting for hours. <3

10/10
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Snoo <3

PS. I can't believe that movie is fourteen years old. I feel like a goddamn geriatric.
 
Two films from me over the hols, I'll cover the biggie first.

Avatar. The expectation on this was immense, and incredibly, from the technical and visceral angles, it actually delivers!

The technical achievements are staggering. Although the realisation of the aliens varies from shot to shot, the quality ranges from mostly awesome to pretty damn decent. There are many instances when the aliens properly act, and it's clear the motion capture has advanced, especially for facial movement - Sam Worthington's acting tics come through very clearly, and Zoe Saldana (Uhura in Star Trek) in particular is brilliant and brings her character fully to life.

The design of the aliens is interesting. Cameron has specifically made them humanoid, as he wanted to ensure that audiences could engage with them - it's too expensive a film to take that extra risk. But I would have loved to have seen the aliens actually be alien, not pseudo-human. I could have done without the faux African overtones too.

Away from the aliens the general design and graphical quality of the planet and its environments is stunning, especially the bioluminescence. Vast portions of the film are entirely CG, and yet very quickly you can forget it's not real, despite the alien nature of the flora! That's not real grass being flattened by rotor blades...

In a large way Avatar is a breakthrough film technically, but this would always have happened at some point, and it's not game-changing in that sense.

Where it DOES change the future of film is in its use of 3D. Cameron designed the 3D cameras himself, and has employed them in a way never before seen to an effect never before experienced.

It's a completely visceral reaction - you FEEL something while watching, at some fundamental, sub-conscious, gut-instinct level. The eyes are feeding the brain, the brain struggles to adjust and then suddenly the world of the film seems to open up and drag your body in. It's incredible, mentally tiring, but incredible, and makes cinema exciting in a whole new way. No previous use of 3D has managed this - I think Polar Express in IMAX 3D is the only comparison I can make, that was engaging and visually impressive, but not as immersive.

How much of this is due to Avatar specifically will be interesting to discover. This is a story about being immersed in a new world, and has been designed and shot specifically with that immersion in mind. Cameron leads us in, both through the characters and visuals - look at how the use of space and depth and volume are employed throughout the film.

Does this new level of immersion affect our interpretation of the film itself? I've seen it in 2D and 3D, and in 2D it's easier to appreciate the film, as the 3D isn't there as a distraction. In 3D, there's a whole extra level of engagement happening on top of the film. Does the 3D do more than excite? Possibly - it feels like there's a new kind of chemistry happening, a new alchemy. I don't think Avatar has fully utilised this effect, there's more to be discovered, but it's introduced it and I think it will change the future of film for films that can make use of it.

There is a downside. To a large degree Avatar's script sucks. The dialogue is often risible, the character motivations are overly simplistic and yet badly delineated, the story entirely predictable, and the many opportunities to broaden the depth with aspects of religion or race or politics or metaphysics are completely ignored. It's a frustrating waste, as the film could really have been something special on an intellectual level too if some simple and obvious changes had been made. In 2D in particular these problems are made stark.

So, absolute top marks to Cameron and his crew for the staggering technical achievement and new-found excitedness of immersive 3D, shame about the script.

7.5/10, but it's an absolute must-see in 3D.
 
Aha! The review I was waiting to read! :)
Excellent Slayed, many thanks for the effort that went into that post, excellent stuff.

I can't get to a 3D showing (not without dedicating 6 hours of my life to seeing the film), so I'm not going to bother then :D

As it's was Christmas, Lovefilm sent me a selection of festive films to watch (I'll cover films I watched on TV in the future).

So, with the festive choice, I finally got to see [REC]. I was a little apprehensive, due to the "OMG, it's the best film ever!!!" brigade. It's always very off-putting. I watched with an open mind though, and didn't let the irritating presenter put me off at the start.

I actually really enjoyed the film. It had some great little shocks, and the pace was excellent. It's a long way from a brilliant film, but it's much better than I was expecting, and much was easily a better film than Cloverfield (Cloverfield was too much a sci-fi blockbuster monster movie pretending to be something else), and a million times better than Diary of the Dead. It just about captured the realism enough.

8/10

So, now I've got Ben's attention, I also watched Book of Blood. It's no secret I'm a Clive Barker fan, but his films tend to be very hit and miss. This one... Well, it's still hit and miss. The story is a bit disjointed, and it's not quite cut correctly, so it doesn't make 100% sense.

BUT! It's a really tense film. Lots of "please, just don't... NOOOOOO! EURRRGGGHHHH!" moments. Cringing behind the sofa, yelling at the TV type of stuff. It's been a long time since a horror actually horrified me, or even got my heart pounding enough to make me jump.

So, it's full of faults, but if you want base horror and a good scare - brilliant. Also, the end sequence is too clean, but it's a brilliant (and nasty) insight into the mind of Clive Barker...

4/10
 
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