Reviews

Having seen CUBE, I've been a fan of Vincenzo Natali's work. Natali seems to have this inept ability to take a storyline, and hardly wring it our like a wet towel for all the storyline he can muster. Instead, he lets the stories themselves unfold in natural ways, so much in fact, that you may in fact believe there is this Cube were people try to escape, or in the case of NOTHING, a large empty expanse where there is... nothing! The advert had me hooked instantly. It seemed so simple! Take two characters who no one likes, and send them to a world where there is nothing. Natali does this so simply that you forget the logic that a place where there is nothing cannot exist. In fact, the world of nothing becomes something of an irony within the film. There's nothing there, but also 'something' there.

It might be a good time to point out that the trailer is highly misleading. I was fortunate enough to actually understand that the film leaned to a more comedic side than the trailer otherwise told so. Therefore upon watching the film, i laughed every now and again, whereas someone who the advert mislead may find themselves utterly confused.

If i may take a minute to give the film some praise, where the film excels on is the concept. It is a genius concept to have a world of nothing, and to put two characters there, NOT two brilliant minded characters, who will philosophise and work out their surroundings, but two idiots who have absolutely no clue as to where the hell they are! Another strong point is the film's cinematography, though at first this may not seem it! Where each wall, north, earth, south, west, up and down is just a white plane, a perception of depth becomes faulty. It is hard to determine where things are placed in the Mis-En-Scene. The cinematography has many moments where this actually happens, but for the most part, the camera is placed so that two characters, or an object and a character are placed in the foreground and background, allowing a sense of depth to be realised.

However, this film does lack in certain areas. The film is relatively short, but even so, after a while the novelty of this world of nothing becomes rather dull, and you wish to find some form of resolution within the plot. We can also argue that the acting is once again, questionable. These two characters are in a sense, unlikeable, therefore we feel no sympathy at any point for these characters. However, on a flip side of that, the chemistry and friendship between the two characters seems real enough, but there is something lacking.

Even so, i do rank this as a thoroughly enjoyable film! Do not let the trailer fool you into thinking this is another science-fiction horror film. It is much more of a comedy than that! It is indeed worth watching though, purely for the concept itself!

Having been an avid fan of the first Fullmetal Alchemist series, i was highly apprehensive on hearing about this reboot, but the more i found out about the series, the more excited i became. I've always been a fan of the Manga, and the new series is being based completely of the manga storyline. This had be hooked, so i waited nervously for the first episode.

The new series features better artwork that resembles Arakawa's style more closely than the last series. There is more humour, especially Ed transmuting a spear-head into his face. There is a new soundtrack, which admittedly, at times doesn't work greatly, but with some getting used too, i'm sure it will grow on me. Overall, i feel this series is a fantastic reboot, and is verging on turning Fullmetal Alchemist into the series it should always have been.

"It's a bloody good film" says Louis, a friend of mine over for a day of random 'Get-together, have-a-laugh, read-my-lyrics and watch-films' kind of day. Choice was to either watch This Is England, or Cube.2: Hypercube. And it is not a difficult task to guess which film won in our random game of selection.

This was the second time i had watched this film, but during my first viewing, i had a lot of stopping and starting, and missed out a few key sequences. Therefore my entire opinion of the film was lacking a certain sense of validity, considering that i didn't know... 'exactly' what i was reviewing. However, having watched it for a second time, i am now able to do my review, which means divulging away from these paragraphs of non-sensical ramblings of the actual watching, and more comprehensible talking of the movie itself.

For starters, criticism's, getting them out of the way first as is my new habit in writing terrible reviews where i have the highly prominent quirk of going off on a tangent (As done now). My first criticism goes to the concept of Smelly's character, as i find the whole idea of a 16-year old girl kissing and dating an 11-year old kind of odd... However, i never grew up in 80's Britian. Hell, i never even grew up in 80's Ireland (My beloved homeland). So perhaps my ignorance of growing up during these times makes me susceptible to finding fault within these types of relationships, as for all i know, there could have been many 16-year old girls dating 11-year old boys. Who knows? Perhaps my main problem with Smelly was that she reminded me too much of mine and my friend's own personal Scary Mary. ("Damn Right!" he says, taking a swig of Stella Artois). Less on that subject though, as personal Scary Marys are never a pretty subject to talk about, no matter what context it is placed within.

To be honest, there is little criticism i can place upon this film. To start with my praising, and immediately diving into talking about the acting... The acting within this film stunned me. I can easily see why Thomas Turgoose has had so much praise for his performance in this film, as it is bloody fantastic! He shows such emotion, and childish attitudes towards simple things ("I want those ones!" he says, pointing to a large pair of red shoes) It is difficult though to point out any bad performances. Mediocre, yes, a fair few performances of 'that' calibre, but there was some outstanding performances. Moving swiftly on to Direction & Writing. Shane Meadows has astounded me once, and i am highly interested in seeing more of his films. The advert on my DVD for his other independent film Dead Man's Shoes looked very interesting, and i plan to view a lot more of his films. There is little to say on the subject of direction, as for what the film is, it was perfect. Shane Meadow's writing was also outstanding. His script was preformed to amazing standard, and shows very little signs of fault. Meadows presents exactly how good scripts can be written, and then presented exceptionally. The cinematography and editing within this film were also exceptional. In specific sequences, which some people may know to which i am referring too. In some sequences, the rapid cinematography shaking around the room, and the rapid editing, showing extreme closeups of different images create such power and hard-hitting images, it is impossible to look at, and impossible to turn away from. Linked from my last point, the soundtrack was perfectly chosen, using choice music composed by one of my favourite pianists (Who i was into long before seeing this film) Ludovico Einaudi. His melodic moving piano pieces matched perfectly the mood and tempo of the specific sequences it was applied too. Other songs from the 80's itself helped to create the 80's feel of the movie, and all in all, it is an exceptional soundtrack.

In my tediously-arrived conclusion, there are little faults within this film. I give this film a 9 out of 10, as it is an exceptional film. Perfect? No, i do not give 10 out of 10 ratings to any films i have seen, but this, easily becomes one of the best films, i have ever seen.

I had high hopes for this film. Prior to watching, I had heard good things about it, and had also been informed, that there was a particularly clever and well-thought out twist awaiting the eager viewer at the end of the film. Sadly, for me, this was not so.

Getting the criticism out of the way first, which'll provide me the opportunity to leave this review on a high note... Firstly, starting from the very beginning. I was quite disappointed with the opening. I watched this on Channel4, and stupidly, listening to the pre-film clip featuring a bunch of taxis in New York, I heard the presenter explain that next film is Vanilla Sky, which has one of the best opening sequences in any film. This got me on the edge of my seat, and why not? Television cannot be wrong right? (Apologies for the over-using the sarcasm) The opening sequence was good in what it was meant to be. But i was disappointed in it's choice of song. I'm an avid fan of Radiohead, and Everything In Its Right Place is one of my favourite songs, but for me, the song was unable to compliment the sequence, and the two juxtaposed each other. (However, in a sense, this can be viewed less as a criticism, and more as a praise, as the song itself is about juxtaposition.) Moving swiftly on, and away from the film's opening and going right into the deep end. (Metaphorically speaking, though it's not a particularly good one) The ending featured a twist (Which i shall not give away) which for one, appalled me. It went against everything i was ever taught in primary school. In basic learning! There are many other ways you could have ended the film, whilst retaining it's prominent themes. But this, did not, and i was appallingly disappointed.

Now for the bit people love, as lovers of film hate reading criticism of films they like (Hell, do people ever give proper deserved ratings out of 10 any more?) There were positive parts to the film. For one, (Although i wasn't impressed with the choice in the opening scene) The soundtrack for this film is brilliant. Every song chosen (apart from the first one) are brilliant in complimenting the film, and matching to the vivid imagery displayed. I may not be tempted to buy the film, but i am very tempted to buy the soundtrack Another strong praise is actually Tom Cruise, who i take my hat off to, if i wore a hat, which i do, if you count a woolly winter hat as one, but i'm not wearing it now, so i shall only metaphorically take it off. Cruise, who is an actor i have little respect for, shines through in brilliant form in this film. He is supported by a very strong supporting cast of Penelope Cruz and Cameron Diaz, who provide mystery within Cruise's character's life, which for me was poorly summed up. For the people who say Cruise cannot act, this is a prime example of how he 'can' act. Another thing i liked within this film, was a small subtle thing. The references to French New Wave. By law, i'm supposed to hate French New Wave, having been forced to study it in my Film Studies classes, but oddly, i like the films, and it was amusing to spot posters of famous films like Breathless within this film. Last point i shall make, as no doubt, anyone who has had the capacity to read this far is probably bored out of their skull, and is wishing they had strayed over to the message boards to find posts 'not-by-me' (Which sadly, won't work either, as i've been vividly expressing the parts i dislike about this film) The other thing i loved was Mis-En-Scene, which ties in with my last praise for the film. There were some beautiful shots within this film, and although i may not have liked the concept of the ending sequence, i certainly loved the look of it. The beautiful sky, with it's rich colours. It was simply just beautiful to look at.

Too sum up my elaborately labelled points which hold absolutely no relevance to anything whatsoever. This film for me, despite having it's good points, is simply average. Yes, i may have loved some parts, but there are a thousand other films which i like for the same reasons, and more! For me, this film just could not live up to it's terrible conclusion, and what might be unfair to describe as, but i'll say it anyway, over-rated beginning. Certainly watch this film, I'm never one to say what you should watch and what you shouldn't. But it's not a film i'll be re-watching in a hurry.

Maybe it's a childhood thing. In fact it probably is. Considering the fact that i was at least 5 when I first watched this film, a young boy growing up in Ireland during times where nothing particularly amazing was happening. To be honest, back then i had absolutely no idea what i was watching. I just liked Rodney Dangerfield's voice. It was amusing. The song's were amusing, and Rover's little gimmicks every now and then sent me and my siblings chuckling and laughing, pointing at the screen and reenacting the said moments that had made us laugh so much "He look's kind of fat' I'm 17, and i've re-watched this on YouTube due to my sister sending me the link with the caption 'Part 1 for you' and a little love-icon. And yes, i watched it all over again, and found myself laughing at all the little moments again, finding humour in what is essentially a weak film. It just brought back all the memories of living in my favourite place back to me, and although for others, this is a tedious film that hardly suffices for children's entertainment, let alone anything else. This film is my personal favourite family childhood film, which i will always love and defend to the bitter end.

Rarely do I buy a film on DVD without having either read up about it or seen it first. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time was the first exception for me. For a dull anecdote, I walked through the store, saw it, and bought it, without knowing anything other than what was written on the back. When i got home, I didn't even start to watch it! But waited until after dinner to watch it, and to cut the already long story short, watching this movie was an experience! From the very first scenes I was grabbed. The artwork, I must say I adore, the scenery is beautiful. As for the storyline, sure, we've had time-travelling stories before, but there's never been one which after seeing it, made me want to watch it again (Seriously, as soon as it was over, I watched it again!) Cutting the even-longer story short again, I highly recommend this film, even those who are not lovers of anime might find themselves enjoying this film. Watching this movie was like an experience for me, and as odd as it may sound, I felt really warm inside after watching this. 9/10.

Fullmetal Alchemist was the first anime series i got hooked on. I was shown the first episode, and everything about it i just adored. Having seen the entire series (3 times) and got it all on DVD (which is kind of difficult when you're living in England), i can now do a review on the series.

Fullmetal Alchemist is a slow-to-star, but highly gripping anime. With a storyline that is half-based on the original comic, and the other half invented for the anime, we basically have a story following two characters, Edward Elric and Alphonse Elric, as they travel across Amestris to regain their bodies.

How can this storyline work? who knows, in my opinion, if i look at what's bad about the series, i find that the storyline isn't great (especially the second half that wasn't based of the comic), the dub, despite working better when in English, it is poor at sometimes. Some of the characters are just terrible (I will never see the point of Archer) and the soundtrack isn't exactly awe-inspiring.

So why do i like this anime so much if so much is wrong with it? It's the relationships between the characters probably. The bond between Edward and Alphonse is a bond any person with a sibling or very close friend knows about, and in the anime, it's communicated so well, that it makes you want to watch the series.

Of course, that isn't the only reason why i love this series, but it's something that stands out for me.

Boy, i could talk for days and days on end about Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad, but doing a review... that's a bit more of a challenge.

Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad is probably one of my favourite anime series. Despite having so many flaws... it's a very slow moving anime, some plot devices get lost, and the instrumentals of the songs sometimes don't match what is being played on the guitar... despite these flaws, i find myself watching Beck, and being in complete awe and amazement at the story of one band's struggle to make it big.

I could easily agree, that lovers of rock legends such as Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, and even Radiohead and Rage Against the Machine, will love this anime.

One warning though, if you watch this anime, you will most likely want to learn how to play the guitar.

When i found this, i had only read the description when i thought 'that is something for my father' so through the marvel of modern technology, i sent it to him. I went and watched it with him, and it was the most delightful and funny spoof-documentary i had ever seen! Badly Drawn Roy is a spood Documentary of the first ever animated cartoon baby born into a 'live-action' family in Ireland.

Watching it also brought all the memories back of what it was like living in Ireland. But less of that, i must comment that the script, was absolutely fantastic. The conversation between the family with Roy is almost real, its uncanny.

All in all, go have a watch of this sometime on YouTube, its worth a watch and is guaranteed to give you a few good laughs.

Being a huge fan of the Die Hard trilogy, i was excited to see that a 4th Die Hard was being made. However, when i finally saw it, i was utterly disappointed.

The fourth movie just wrecked everything that made the Die Hard trilogy what is was. In fact, i describe it as being very 'Un-Die Hardy' The storyline was pretty terrible, the random sidekick the threw into the film? annoying as hell. Nothing in this movie stood out for me, it was more like a very boring action thriller than a witty action thriller like the first Die Hards.

If you loved Die Hard, then stay away from Die Hard.4

I won't specify reasons for hating this film, but moreover my lack of knowledge for the large amount of praise it receives. Perhaps myself being of a younger generation, i did not see much of the concept of the movie, or why it manages to amaze so many people.

Perhaps this is just my own ignorance.

I shall admit, it works as a good character study, which is likely most of the reason why i must comment on this title during my exam, but i still see little in this film that is substantial for it to be an amazing film. Only that the soundtrack is pretty cool, and that the film does not have such a large hype.

Overall, i find this movie average for me. Not something i would personally go out to buy. But that doesn't mean it isn't good. I'm sure it is, but i just fail to think so.

Cube is one of rare films that highly pleases me. Despite having many clerical errors throughout, Cube is an example of Science-Fiction at its best.

Throughout the film, we find ourselves constantly asking thousands of questions, about the origins of the Cube and the People inside the Cube. It becomes apparent, that these questions will never get answered (unless you watch the sequel, and prequel, which are highly dissatisfying) Cube is known as a Science-Fiction movie, but some people don't realise that it is more of a character study. As the film progresses, we are shown different characters, and how their situation shifts and changes them, until our own views we had at the beginning are completely transformed.

So, in conclusion, if you have not seen this film, i highly recommend it.