And The Winner Is....

My word! I have so many films to review!!!

But first things first.

A week yesterday was the end of our annual film week (Woohoo.) Last year was very official.. We had notepads and rated the films to decide a winner. We scraped that. This year was about enjoyment. We didn't decide a winner all together but I know what came out on top for me. (Note: The winner isn't my favourite out of the films on the list. Just the one that I enjoyed most in film week.)

Here are the films:

• DAY 1


• The Beach (****)
  
• Moon (*****)


• Goodfellas (*****)


• The Good, The Bad and The Weird (See previous review)


• DAY 2


• Into The Wild (****)


• The Holy Grail (*****)


• The Pianist (*****)


• Being John Malkovich (*****)


• DAY 3


• In Bruges (*****)


• Brick (*****)


• Walk The Line (****)


• The Shining (*****)


• DAY 4


• Leon (We were half asleep - or asleep- for (ooer))


• Garden State (****)


• Taxi Driver (Which we never got around to.. This year or last year.)


• [500] Days Of Summer (*****)
  

You can tell from my mini star ratings which films I loved.

But the winner is.........

[500] Days Of Summer!

So lets review it.

The story of one man called Tom and his love with Summer. A girl... Not the season. The tag line of the movie is, 'Boy meets Girl. Boy falls in love. Girl doesn't.' Sound original? No? Well it is. Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) works in an office and falls for colleague Summer (Zooey Deschanel.) She may or may not love him back. We follow the 500 days of their relationship, good and bad, but not in chronological order. We jump from day 22 to 204. (Maybe not those exact days but you get the point.)

The film doesn't take itself too serious. We're randomly treated to a documentary about love with opinions from characters. There is a huge dance sequence complete with an animated bird. There is a split-scene comparison between reality and expectations for a whole scene. The film is very funny. Check out the date scene in Ikea, "Honey. I don't know how to tell you this, but there is a Chinese family in our bathroom." But it is also sad... After all it is (not) a love story.

The soundtrack is epic. Every song is brilliantly selected. Some camera work is outstanding and the acting is just... wow.

Watch this movie. No exception.

Best bit? Either the dance sequence or the first date to Ikea. Classic.

North By Northwest

Okay no creative title... Sorry.

The famous Hitchcock classic, North By Northwest. If you've seen this film or not you'll know the crop duster scene. Everyone does!

Lets start with the director, Alfred Hitchcock. One of the best directors of all time, if not the greatest. I have huge admiration for this man. His dress sense, his habits, his films, his way of getting things done and his wicked sense of humour. And these aspects are clearly visible. Note his protagonists in suits despite what their doing.

Cary Grant is incredible. A cocky advert exec mistaken for a spy who doesn't exist. Thrown into the deep end of life, he has to fight for his life against evil Vandamm's (James Mason) games. His line delivery is brilliantly funny and his slow turn from cocky exec to almost a spy is believable and precise. Eve Kendall as Eva Marie Saint is incredible. Considering actresses in the 70's were often hired by looks but Hitchcock made sure he had talent in his films. James Mason is always worth a mention. His fun loving criminal mastermind plays games with Thornhill (Grant) like trying to mow him down with a crop duster.

Carry Grant Was Feeling A Bit Run Down Today.

Brilliantly edited together with some crazy, crazy action scenes, (Climbing down Geroge Washington's face anyone?) and a brilliant plot. It's such a good film and very clever and very funny. Its humour is often overlooked but it is incredibly amusing.



Watch it. Watch it now.





Best bit?
The Cropduster scene and.....

[Thornhill climbs into hospital window]

Woman: [Shocked] STOP!

[Turns light on and puts on glasses. Looks at Thornhill]


Woman: [Seductevely] Stop....


[Thornhill Pauses]


Thornhill: [Pointing at woman] HA!


[Leaves]

Wrestling Is Fake?!?!?!

Is it better to say BAFTA winning or Oscar nominated?

Of course I'm talking about Mickey Rourke's performance as Randy 'The Ram' in The Wrestler.

And that's what we're talking about today. The Wrestler. A remarkable film... really.. it is.

A Wrestler who suffers a serious knock back, a heart attack, and his life, portrayed on the big screen with real heart. Rourke is magnificent. When you see a fully grown man who is a wrestler for a living break down into tears... It gets to you. Evan Rachel Wood also puts in a stunning performance as Stephanie, Randy's daughter. I think I mildly fell in love with her.

The Ayatollah's new 'Shout-in-the-face' hit Randy hard.

The story line is very simple but effective. It shows the glamour of wrestling but also the sad empty world it could leave you with. Its easy to sink into and easy to follow. So the less intellegent of us can also enjoy it. BUT it says wrestling is all planned! This may be a shock for those less intellegent i mentioned... Wrestling is fake.. Sorry.



Really Really Really worth a watch. Something for everyone, romance, comedy, emotion, fighting, being sick on the floor, blood. Yup it's all there.





Best bit? Randy's improvisation and using a metal, false leg as a weapon in a fight. Genuis.

Till Death Do Us Departed

This is my 20th post. Should I do something special? Nah.

The Departed. Starring two of my favourite actors and directed by one of my favourite directors; it's gotta be good.

Jack Nicholson is my favourite actor of all time and even at 70 he still rocks this film. Playing Irish mafia boss Frank Costello, he shows that he hasn't lost his triple Oscar wining talent. I can't imagine anyone else playing this part especially considering his part was heavily improvised, (which made some classic moments.. Throwing coke on prostitutes... Wearing a strap-on to the cinema.) He is a weirdo. Leonardo DiCaprio was also amazing starring as a police rat in Costello's mafia. A lack of a real identity drives him mad but he keeps with his job. A man with a identity complex pulled from side to side and portrayed amazingly.

You're doing WHAT at the moment?

Matt Damon is another rat but he's inside the police working for Costello.. Confusing? He's also suburb and highly underrated. He struggles between keeping his secret and keeping his girlfriend happy while trying to find out who the rat in the mafia is. Mark Wahlberg was incredible and really deserved his Oscar nod the angry cop who runs the ship, hates Damon's character and loves his job. Also worth a mention are Vera Farmiga and Alec Baldwin in smaller but equally amazing parts.


In case you haven't guessed, every actor was magnificent. As was the direction. Martin Scorsese is one of the best directors of all time and he continued that reputation with 'his first film with a plot.' Don't even get me started on the soundtrack. It was so brilliantly used. The sudden cuts, the choice of songs... It's all so good. The camera work is stunning. Everything is just awesome.

"What drink should I have with my breakfast? Wine? Coffee? OJ? Tea?"

The action keeps you on the very edge of your seat and the emotional moments/ breakdowns are emotional. The plot is complex yet understandable. The acting and direction are amazing. It's just an amazing film. Watch it.

Best bit? The nail biting finale. All the way to the last second.

The Good The Bad And The Okay Looking.

Poor old Eli Wallach... Being classed as 'The Ugly.' He's not that bad... Could be worse.

The Good The Bad And The Ugly. 9.0 on IMBD... Number 25 on Empire's top 500... One of the best films ever?? It is very good. I'm just stuck on how good.... Lets review it first.

FYI (For your information.) Blondie is The Good, Tuco is The Ugly and Angel Eyes is The Bad

The plot is brilliant. Blondie (Clint Eastwood) and Tuco (Wallach) have a little (illeagal) buisness going but when Blondie leaves Tuco in the desert, revenge is called for. When the pair stumble across a wagon full of dead soldiers they discover there is $200,000 buried somewhere. The twist? Blondie and Tuco hear different halves of the secret. Neither of them can get their hands on the money alone. Through out twist and turns, Angel Eyes (Lee Van Cleef) discovers Tuco's half of the secret and the race is on.

Tuco was a bit tied up with the race for the money.

Eastwood is the coolest man from the 60's simply from this film. (Paul Newman comes a close second.) Wallach was Oscar worthy and Van Cleef was... Great. These guys really put their lives into this film. I mean it! Eastwood and Wallach could have died! Imagine it! The last 40 years without Gran Torino, Million Dollar Baby or any other Clint Eastwood film! You see, during an explosion, Eastwood is taking cover in some sand bags with Wallach and some wreckage slammed inches away from his head. Wallach on the other hand, was almost decapitated by a train while lying along side the rails. (These are parts of the film but the threats were real.)

"Looking hot today Eastwood"

The cinematography was excellent. The soundtrack is iconic. Sure the film is only just shy of three hours but still is shorter than The Godfather Part II. The drama doesn't stop and due to the sassy one liners from Tuco and simple coolness of Blondie every second is watchable. The pair are enjoyable to watch and Van Cleef is a brilliant villain. The rough nature of the west is thrilling and exciting.

Overall this film is brilliant. This review has helped me make a decision on the rating. If you have three free hours, watch this. You won't regret it.


Best Bit? The last half an hour. Pure brilliance.

Timecrimes OR Los Cronocrimenes

You may well have guessed that this film isn't an English language film. That's okay right? We don't mind some subtitles, do we? No. Because one cannot claim to love films without first accepting films in all of its forms and varieties.

Anyhoo. Do you like Time travel? Paradoxes? Naked Women? Crazed bandage wearing freaks? Then boy do I have a film for you! In English it's called Timecrimes though its real name is Los Cronocrimenes, directed by Spanish director, Nacho Vigalondo (His first feature film may I add.) I was first attracted to this film when they showed this picture in Empire Magazine:

Only a real man can pull off pink...

I love crazy, psychotic characters and when I saw those bandages I knew he'd be a good'un. And so I read the article but alas it wasn't that informative.... But HMV had the answer; there it was in the foreign films section for only £3. How could I refuse? I couldn't is the answer. And it didn't disappoint.

The plot is awesome. It feels like one should think more but really you just have to sit back and watch the events occur. It's mind bending nevertheless; How does the loop start? Did any paradoxes occur? Did Hector affect the timeline at all? The simple answers to all these questions is... It doesn't matter. IMDB message boards will answer them correctly but the simple truth is you don't need to know.

Next, the acting. I very much enjoyed Karra Elejalde's change from a mildly grumpy middle aged man to a dark, sinister character as he battles himself for his life. (You'll get it if you watch the film) He travels back in time a couple of hours and has to preserve the timeline and ensure that he (Hector 1) proceeds to carry out Hector 2's actions. Confusing? Nah. Watch it... it'll make sense.

"Damn I knew I should've brought my telescope"

Overall the film is an enjoyable waste of 90 minutes or so. There are some excellent camera shots, an awesome score, some OMG NO WAY moments and some funny times. Also look out for a crew member trying to get out of camera shot at around 4 minutes when Hector picks up the phone.

Best Bit? Another Tricky one but I'm gonna go with The first chase in the woods with the bandaged guy. (See second picture for exact moment.)