Cloverfield
By admin | February 21, 2008
Ok. So what is Cloverfield about? I wasn’t entirely sure before I went to see it, and so went in to the cinema with an entirely open mind. The plot is based around the story of 5 New Yorkers: Rob and Jason, who are brothers; Jasons girlfriend, Lily; Robs best friend, Hud; and Hud’s love interest, Marlena. When a monster attacks the city, instead of leaving the city, they decide to go rescue the woman that Rob loves who is injured and stuck in her apartment. The story is told from the perspective of a handheld video camera, through which the terrifying story of these characters is documented; a story of a night in New York in what is essentially a war zone.
The first 15-20 minutes introduced the characters, before the major action set in. The characters are young trendies with whom I personally could never befriend. As such, I found them pretentious and annoying, which made them really difficult to connect with. I think this is possibly why I didn’t really get drawn into the movie the way I normally would. Hud was the only redeeming character in this movie; I thought he was great. He brought a bit of comedy into a very dark situation which really helped the movie along.
The idea behind the movie was absolutely fantastic. Telling the story from the first person perspective is really brilliant for this story, and it definitely worked well. I loved this aspect of the movie. And the whole night vision bit creeped the crap out of me! Also, look out for the gnashers - they’re awesome!
As I said, my main problem with the movie was with the characters. Perhaps if I was a New York trendy, or if this was even an aspiration, I might have enjoyed it more…
Topics: Horror, On the fence with this one | No Comments »
Will and Grace
By admin | September 12, 2007
Will & Grace is a sitcom about two best friends living in New York. Will is a gay lawyer, and Grace is a straight, Jewish interior designer. They are slightly more than friends and slightly less than lovers, but they do share a special bond. They are both a bit odd in their own special way, but their personalities easily balance each others out.
In the beginning, Grace (Debra Messing) was about to get married to her boyfriend Danny. When Will (played by Eric McCormack), her long time best friend disapproved, she became angry and planned to get married secretly anyway. However on the way to the wedding she realizes that Will was right, and she leaves Danny. She ends up moving in with Will, in his apartment on the Upper West Side in New York City. This is only supposed to be until Grace finds a place of her own, but she and Will end up with each other as permanent roommates. The show follows both Will and Grace’s attempts to establish romantic relationships without sacrificing their co-dependent reliance on one another for emotional support. A common joke finds other characters referring to Will and Grace as more like a couple than as two friends.
Will is a lawyer who is extremely neurotic, especially when it comes to cleaning. He is rather unlucky in love, which is one thing that irritates me a little about the show. It would be nice for once, to see a gay man portrayed in a happy relationship. In saying that, Will did have a seven-year relationship which ended before the series even began. Will’s first long-term love interest doesn’t happen until almost 6 years into the show when he meets Vince (Bobby Cannavale), an Italian-American NYPD officer. Will also meets another long(ish)-term love interest, James (played by Taye Diggs), initially at a Sound of Music sing-along.
Grace is one of Will’s oldest friends (in fact they were a couple in the 1980s before Will realised he was gay) who has a total obsession with food. On the show, she goes through a succession of lovers, played by actors including Woody Harrelson and Edward Burns. Her lovers always seem to feel uncomfortable and jealous of to her relationship with Will. Grace does eventually settle down and marries Leo (Harry Connick, Jr.) who doesn’t really get bothered by Will and Grace’s friendship. However the relationship is turbulent because of Leo’s job; he works for Doctors Without Borders in Cambodia.
In addition to the stable Will and Grace, the show features their two friends; the flamboyantly gay Jack (played by Sean Hayes), and Grace’s sarcastic, spoiled and boozy assistant, Karen (Megan Mullally). Jack is a struggling stage-actor/singer/dancer who, over the course of the show, has just about every job under the sun including his one-man-show, cater-waiter, shop assistant, back-up dancer and TV producer. He has a long string of lovers and dates although we don’t really see any of them evolve into a relationship until the sixth season. Karen is an alcoholic multimillionaire who is married to Stan (whom we never see) an extremely wealthy and overweight man with some unusual sexual tastes. Karen works as Grace’s assistant in order to have some time away from the home she shares with her husband Stan and his kids. Their relationship also has it’s ups and downs until Stan dies. After this, Karen begins to date again, the most memorable relationship being her 20 minute long marriage to a character played excellently by John Cleese.
Will & Grace is a really good show. Even with it’s gay theme it has been a huge hit across the US and in the UK (although to be fair in the last few seasons it’s ratings did dip a bit). The writing is normally excellent, and sometimes exceptional. The characters are played excellently, especially Sean Hayes character Jack who is unbelievably energetic, always plotting, and almost too fast to follow! Megan Mullally’s character Karen is quick, sharp and witty; she totally gets the best lines. Karen is the type of character that you’d secretly want to be like… Debra Messing and Eric McCormack do a wonderful job too in the lead roles. The chemistry between the four main cat members is fabulous.
All in all, as long as you don’t analyse it, you’ll love it!!!
Topics: Sitcom, TV series, Comedy, Top banana | No Comments »
Because I said so
By admin | September 6, 2007
Daphne Wilder (Diane Keaton) is a mother whose love know no bounds… or boundaries. She is a single parent who has raised three daughters: stable psychologist Maggie (Lauren Graham); sexy, irreverent Mae (played by Piper Perabo) and adorable, creative Milly (Mandy Moore), who, when it comes to men, always manages to attract the wierdos or psychos, and always falls in love with the wrong guy.
In order to prevent Milly from making the same mistakes she did, Daphne decides to set her up with ‘the perfect man’. Taking matchmaking into her own hands, she begins to trail the personal adverts in order to find someone suitable for her daughter. Among those she interviews, Daphne meets a wealthy architect Jason (Tom Everett Scott) and a free-spirited guitarist Johnny (played by Gabriel Macht), who are both keen to date Milly.
Unfortunately, Milly doesn’t know that her mother set her up, or that she came across this perfect man by interviewing men she found on an internet dating site. So when she finds out what her mother has been up to, she inevitably gets pretty upset.
Well, we all know which of the guys we’re supposed to want Milly to like (well, she can’t like the successful architect, can she). Of course she is supposed to fall for the lovable, romantic guitar player, Johnny. To Daphne though, he is a loser, and she’s appalled when he seeks out her daughter. Most of the movie is devoted to her attempts to fend off his excellent intentions.
The acting isn’t all that great from the main characters (Diane Keaton and Mandy Moore). Diane Keaton kind of feels like she’s doing a variation on what she normally does. Granted, she is talking a bit faster and waving her hands around a lot more, but it just feels very samey. However when you’re great, why change? Piper Perabo and Lauren Graham are wasted as secondary characters, but they do throw in a few excellent quips here and there.
This movie has had a lot of bad reviews, but most women I know like a good contemporary fairytale, where every princess will eventually find her perfect prince even if she has to kiss a few frogs along the way. Romantic comedy doesn’t need elaborate explanations of human behaviour; movies in this genre only need to provide an efficient resolution of some silly situation that none of the characters should be in, and no real person with any form of intelligence would ever be in.
All in all, it’s not that bad.
Topics: Movie, Romantic, Chick Flick, Comedy, On the fence with this one | No Comments »
Breach
By admin | September 5, 2007
Breach stars Chris Cooper as Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent convicted of spying for the Soviet Union for 15 years before he was finally caught. In an attempt to catch him in the act, the FBI put Eric O’neill (Ryan Phillipe) undercover as his clerk. While the FBI could arrest Hanssen under lesser charges, they want to catch him in the act of espionage. The reason for this is that if they can threaten him with the possibility of the death penalty for treason, Hanssen may be more likely to divulge the information he stole.
The movie carries the tagline: Inspired by the true story of the greatest security breach in U.S. history. It is based around the true story of these two men, Eric O’neill and Robert Hanssen. Hanssen sold to the Soviets the names of three KGB agents in the United States secretly working for the FBI and gave the Soviets a list of all American double agents on several ocassions. He also gave the Soviets, and later the Russians, 6,000 pages of documents and 27 computer diskettes cataloguing secret and top secret programs.
Hanssens is an interesting story, however the movie does not tell this story, instead shifting the focus to the young hot-shot who helped bring Hanssen down. I think the problem with this is that Eric O’neill himself isn’t a particularly interesting character, and it isn’t made any better by Ryan Phillipes performance.
The movie shows how Eric O’neill managed to earn Hanssens trust, possibly through their shared religion. We see the relationship between the two men change over time, building from strictly business almost to friendship, which is essentially what led to him being caught. However the movie really bored me, especially at the start. It was slow moving and a bit tedious. The only thing that was remotely exciting about the movie was Chris Coopers portrayal of Robert Hanssen. He played the character phenomenally; he manages to say so much with just his eyes, and he really makes you squirm at some points in the movie because he’s so creepy.
The movie has been dubbed as a psychological thriller or a cerebral movie, but it was more of a psychological borer. If I were you I’d read ones of the books that has been written about Hanssen rather than watching this movie.
Topics: Movie, Drama, Big thumbs down | No Comments »
Knocked Up
By admin | September 4, 2007
Ben Stone (played by Seth Rogen) is a 23 year old slacker with no job, no prospects and who lives in a house with 4 of his stoner friends. 24 year old Alison Scott (Katherine Heigl) is reponsible, independent, career-driven and an up and coming TV presenter. They are out partying one night, get pretty drunk, and end up having a one night stand which includes a misinterpretation of the phrase ‘just do it already’. When the alcohol wears off, they realise that they have absolutely nothing in common. Since they are so different, they don’t think they’ll ever see each other again.
However eight weeks later Alison realises that she is pregnant and calls Ben who says that he will be there for her and the baby. After a successful start to their relationship, tension eventually begins to surface; Ben feels that Alison is controlling and that she is trying to change him, and she feels that he lacks responsibility. Will they be able to make it work for the sake of their baby?
This is one of the most awkward movies I have ever seen. But in a good way. Sometimes the script makes you cringe, but it really is extremely funny. The movie keeps you entertained throughout, and you can sympathise with the characters and the situation they find themselves in.
The characters are believable, yet amusing, and are played excellently. All of the characters are interesting, and all are funny. The script is hilarious and very well written. The movie really manages to capture the comedy behind the situation, and it makes light of a pretty serious situation (although that could be construed as being a good or a bad thing). The movie is a bit graphic and a bit gross at times, but that just adds to the hilarity.
It is a really great movie (definitely for a mature audience though). I loved it.
Topics: Movie, Romantic, Comedy, Watch it - no matter what else you do with your life | No Comments »
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
By admin | September 4, 2007
Las Vegas, Nevada, is famous for it’s appeal to those looking for a lucky break or a wild weekend, and its reputation for attracting the hopeful and the naïve into trying their luck in the vast world of gambling. Las Vegas catches the fancy of many a personality, including the immoral and lewd, which inevitably leads to criminal acts that have to be unravelled.
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation revolves around the CSI division of the Las Vegas Police Department, or as the characters call it, the Las Vegas Crime Lab, which is the second most active in the US. It follows the cases of the forensic investigators who solve crimes by studying evidence at left behind at crime scenes; fingerprints, hairs, fibres, solvents etc.
The team is led by Gil Grissom (played by William Petersen) who is the night shift team supervisor, and a forensic entomologist. He is extremely methodical, bordering on the obsessive, and is very dedicated to obtaining all the facts of a case. His second in command (for the first few seasons anyway) is Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger), a blood spatter analyst, single mother attempting to juggle parenthood and a very demanding job, and an ex-exotic dancer.
Warrick Brown (Gary Dourdan), the audio-video analyst and Nick Stokes (George Eads), the hair and fibre analyst are constantly competing to solve their cases. Warrick is a recovering gambling addict (which isn’t helped by the fact he works in Las Vegas), and almost lost his job because of it. It was in fact Grissom’s friendship and support that helped him get over that addiction. Stokes is an easygoing and friendly frat member from Dallas, Texas. Stokes tends to empathise with the victims in his cases rather than sympathise which sometimes doesn’t go down well with others.
Sara Sidle (played by Jorja Fox) is the materials and element analyst. She is a physics major and previously worked for the San Francisco coroner and crime lab. She is completely devoted to her job, possibly more so than anyone except Grissom and will go to almost any lengths to make sure justice is served. Sara has difficulties with dealing with abuse cases against women and children, a result of her childhood memories of her parents; her father was an alcoholic, and continually beat her mother until Sara’s mother snapped and stabbed him to death. Sara also has a semi-romantic relationship with Gil Grissom.
Other main characters include Captain Jim Brass (Paul Guilfoyle), Greg Sanders (Eric Szmanda), the newest addition to the CSI team, and the head county coroner, Dr Al Robbins (played by Robert David Hall).
Grissom and his team of elite investigators work an assortment of bewildering cases using their own scientific skills and specialist equipment. In doing so they are capable of finding valuable clues from what seem to be unlikely sources which may or may not lead to the conclusion of a murder or accidental death.
This really great dramatic series, created by Anthony Zuiker, does keep in with the setting of the programme, investigations often lead to taboo subject matter, such as sexual deviations. The show has pushed the boundaries of what is considered acceptable viewing for prime time TV, and has repeatedly been criticised for this. The bizarre conclusions of the cases often force one to question morals and beliefs and can also make you take a deeper look at human nature.
Topics: Crime, TV series, Drama, Top banana | No Comments »
Frasier
By admin | September 3, 2007
Frasier is an American sitcom which stars Kelsey Grammar as Dr Frasier Crane, a neurotic, insecure and more than slightly pompous psychiatrist.
Following the breakup of his marriage, Frasier leaves his life in Boston and returns to his hometown of Seattle, in Washington. He takes up a job as a radio psychiatrist at KACL, where he has the chance to spread his words of wit and wisdom to anyone who will listen to him. Frasier’s man-crazy producer, Roz Doyle (Peri Gilpin), despite being entirely different from him in almost every way, becomes his very good friend throughout the show.
Frasier’s plans for his batchelor lifestyle have to be altered when his father has to retire from the force due to a shooting incident and subsequent hip injury leaving him unable to live on his own. His father, Martin Crane (played by John Mahoney), moves in with him, as does Martin’s physical therapist, Daphne Moon.
Daphne (Jane Leeves) is a bit of an eccentric (like most other characters on the show) and believes herself to be a bit psychic. She is a recent immigrant from Manchester, England, and although she is initially hired as a physical therapist for Martin, she quickly takes up other housekeeping and cooking duties. Daphne immediately catches the attention of Frasier’s younger snobby, fussy and obsessive brother, Niles (played by David Hyde Pierce). Niles is also a phsychiatrist and has a huge humber of phobias and medical conditions; he faints at the sight of blood and is prone to panic attacks and fainting during times of high stress. And of course we can’t forget little Eddie, the lovable dog who apparently received more fan mail than any other cast member in the show!
The comedy is based around the intricate relationships in this rather odd group of people. The tensions between Frasier and his father, and their difficulty in compromising with each other and sharing an apartment. Although Niles and Frasier are very similar; they are both admirers of theatre, opera, fine wine and gourmet foods and enjoy frequenting exclusive social gatherings. They also both obsessed with climing the social ladder and knowing the ‘right people’, but their sibling rivalry and intense petty jealousy often results in chaos and is the main driver of many a plot.
Roz’s constant string of partners, Frasier’s steady search for love and Niles’ increasing love for Daphne are also big storylines in the show.
I must say, Frasier is one of the few sitcoms that I could just watch over and over again. It is constantly on the paramount comedy show, and for very good reason; it is hilarious! The humour in Frasier isn’t like most other American sitcoms, it is far more sarcastic and intelligent, and far less obvious.
The characters are played very well, and all are believable. Frasiers character actually originated in Cheers, which ran for eleven seasons on NBC. Frasier, the show, was also broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons (from September 16th 1993 to May 13th 2004), which says a lot about a show that was a spin-off from another (very popular) sitcom.
There are so many funny incidents in Frasier, and scrapes that he and his brother get themselves into, that it would take days to write them all here. This show really is a must see. After a few episodes, when you get to know the characters, they will have you falling over laughing!!!
Click here for the official Frasier website
Topics: Sitcom, TV series, Comedy, Watch it - no matter what else you do with your life | No Comments »
The Ninth Gate
By admin | August 26, 2007
To be perfectly honest I’m not quite sure what on earth this movie was all about. As far as I can tell Johnny Depp is a rare book dealer who, while attempting to find 2 copies of ‘The Ninth Gate of The Kingdom of Shadows’ (which apparently holds the key to summoning Satan himself), somehow gets drawn into a conspiracy with demonic undertones.
I attempted to watch it 3 nights in a row, and fell asleep on all 3 occasions. It’s not that I was extremely tired, it’s just that this movie was a pile of smelly crap. I eventually finished watching it, but it really was a chore. Me and my friend decided to make a list of words that describe this movie (we had to amuse ourselves somehow) and this is what we came up with:
- Painful
- Boring (very)
- Tedious
- Predicatable
- Pointless
- Rubbish
- My cat could direct a better movie
- Lacking
- Inane
- Dull
- Unimaginitive
- Monotonous
- Excruciating
- Mediocre
- Pants
The only saving grace was the music. The music was great. Buy the soundtrack, but absolutely under no circumstances should you put yourself through the pain of watching this movie.
Topics: Fantasy, Movie, 2 hrs you wont ever get back... | No Comments »
Last Holiday
By admin | August 23, 2007
Life has always been full of possibilities for Georgia Byrd (played by Queen Latifah), a shy New Orleans cookware sales clerk, but never realities. When she finds out that she is terminally ill and has less than a month left to live, she decides to give her life a makeover and just enjoy herself.
So she quits her job (consequently leaving LL Cool J, the man she loves, behind), takes all her money out of the bank and sets off on her dream holiday. She heads to a glamorous European spa resort and takes on a whole new persona; a new look, a new attitude, new moves and a new outlook on life. However hamdsome Mr Cool J eventually finds out why Georgia up and left and decides to go after her to spend whatever time he can with her.
Queen Latifah knows how to pick a good script. This is an excellent movie. The acting, characters and script are all wonderfully done.
Although it is a bit predictable, just like any other romantic comedy, Last Holiday is a real feel-good movie. And it definitely scores a 10 out of 10 on the chick-flick rating. If you’re down or you’re having a girly night in, watch it. It’s great fun.
One thing I would say though, is make sure you have some snacks lying about because this movie will make you hungry!!
Topics: Movie, Romantic, Chick Flick, Comedy, Top banana | No Comments »
Family Guy
By admin | August 21, 2007
Family Guy is a series about a rather abnormal Griffin family in an extremely abnormal world.
The family consists of 6 members. Peter, the dad, is a morbidly obese moron who always says what’s on his mind (and sometimes what’s on his mind is bizzare and entirely unrelated to what is going on around him). Peter always tries to do what’s right for the family, but along the way he makes mistakes that are the stuff of legends.
His wife, Lois, is an heiress-turned-modern-housewife who gave up her Pewtershmidt millions when she fell for the lovable oaf, Peter. Lois is, as all women are, a complex being, devoted to her family. She also happens to be a bit of a mad sexpot…
Lois and Peter have 3 kids. The eldest is Meg who is a typical whiny teenager, desperate to be in with the “cool” kids. However, poor unfortunate Meg is a total drama queen and although her family love her, they can’t help but use her as an emotional punch bag. Chris Griffin is just as obese as his father. At the tender age of 13 he is enormous, but a complete sweetheart. He does have some hidden talents, but likes nothing more than to sit watching TV with his dad, looking at boobs probably! Stewie is a one year old homicidal baby who makees numerous attempts to eradicate his mother, Lois. Apart from constantly trying to whack his mum, Stewie’s other goal is complete world domination. He is my favourite character of the lot, with his overly-English accent and his superiority complex; he’s a funny little guy.
Brian is the martini loving family dog who is one of the most sarcastic and cynical characters I have ever seen on TV. He is a gentleman, a scholar and is often the smartest and most well-balanced member of the family.
Family Guy has won 2 Emmys and has had 4 other wins and 19 nominations. It is smart, funny, outrageous, edgy and extremely creative. The comedy on this show often surpasses that of most other comedies on TV.
With absurd and often spontanious events this show will keep you laughing from beginning to end. And then some!
NOT for the whole family though…
Topics: TV series, Animation, Comedy, Watch it - no matter what else you do with your life | No Comments »