Daredevil

Daredevil (2003) starring Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner, Colin Farrell, and Michael Clarke Duncan.

Before...I am surprised I have never seen this movie. 6 years on and I wonder why I haven't seen it. It's not that I have heard awful things about it, although I have. I just haven't got round to it. As I love comic book movies, I was thoroughly looking forward to this movie. I had heard it was darker than most comic book movies, and that intrigued me. I was looking forward to a good 'un!

Matt Murdock (Affleck), as a youngster, is doused with hazardous waste, and not only is he blinded but all of his other senses are heightened. When King Pin (Clarke Duncan) kills his father, Murdock starts his life as superhero, Daredevil. By day he is a lawyer, by night he is the DareDevil, bringing justice to the streets of Hells Kitchen. He meets Elektra Natchios (Garner), a fiesty daughter of a millionaire. Soon she is drawn into King Pins world when he calls in Bullseye (Farrell) to eliminate DareDevil and her.

The films plot, takes a good stab at being the darker comicbook that was originally created. Unfortunately, it doesn't quite hit the mark at the darkness needed to mirror its comic counterpart. The film walks the line of humour far too much for my liking. The darkness presented in The Dark Knight is proof enough that it is possible and this only goes half way, perhaps for fear of alienating it's audience.

The acting, at times is just downright poor. The one who truly lest the film down in my view is Garner. Though in all honesty the script writers did not give her enough chance to develop her character fully. She is left with a half character, one that desperately needed a second film to show that the character actually had depth. Affleck, Farrell and Duncan are all convincing enough in there roles and although unneeded Farrell supplies good comic lines, not getting the quick witted responses needed of him. From what I understand his character should be similar to Deadpool in his responses.

The soundtrack is a fantastically constructed rock album, with Evanescence holding centre stage. The tracks all help to capture the mood and at times the darkness of the piece.

Overall I was slightly underwhelmed by it, although I had been told it wasn't fully up to scratch, I kind of hoped they were wrong. It is a good solid superhero movie but its no X2, or Spiderman 2, and certainly not a patch on The Dark Knight or Watchmen.

★★★☆☆

Masters of the Universe

Masters of the Universe (1987) starring Dolph Lundgren, Frank Langella, Courteney Cox and Robert Duncan McNeill.

Before...well some had told me it was an 80's classic. Others had told me that they should have left the cartoon well alone, particularly when they told them their initial idea was going to be too expensive. However I went into with fear and trepidation, with the knowledge that people were nervous about another remake considering how bad it was.

The world of Eternia is in the aftermath of Skeletor's (Langella) war on Castle Grayskull, which he has won after seizing Grayskull and the surrounding city using a cosmic key developed by the Thenorian locksmith Gwildor. The Sorceress is now Skeletor's prisoner and he begins to drain her life-force as he waits for the moon of Eternia to align with the Great Eye of the Universe that will bestow god-like power upon him. He-man (Lundgren) and his fellow freedom fighters attempt to stop him and in the process get sent to Earth, where they team up with two teenagers (Cox, Duncan McNeil) who help him stop Skeletor.

The plot of this film is a jumbled mess, and it is no wonder when this is the rewrite. The original plan for this film was for it all to be set on Eternia, however they decided that due to the large amount of creatures and characters that it would be too expensive to film. So the cut backs they made led the writers to reorganise it so that most of the plot was going to be set on Earth.

The plot is not the worst thing about this movie, that award goes to the acting. The acting in this film is truly awful. Lundgren is completely unconvincing as He-man, and one of the key problems of this is that he barely has any lines. The script is disjointed and clichéd. Considering the way Courtney Cox acts in this movie I am shocked that she got chosen for the role of Monica in friends.

To sum it up in a few words, this film is truly awful. Acting, plot, directing. Everything about it makes me regret I even watched it, and that happens with very few films. Generally I feel each film is made for a specific group, however with this one I am completely at a loss. Children would get lost with most of the plot, teenagers would find it cheesy clichéd and generally rather rubbish and adults...well you know how I feel about it.

This film was a waste of my time watching and I am glad to see the back of it. This slots in right next to Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Definitely one to forget!

★☆☆☆☆

Drillbit Taylor

Drillbit Taylor (2008) starring Owen Wilson, Ian Roberts, Troy Gentile, Nate Hartley, and Alex Frost.

So beforehand...I had heard mixed reviews about this film. Some people found it hilarious some people found it truly atrocious...to put it bluntly it was a marmite movie, or at least that is the general consensus I got from it. Owen Wilson generally is great in any movie he is in, in my view. So I was expecting a run of the mill comedy.

The film is based around three boys (Roberts, Gentile, Hartley) who are going into High School for the first time. They start to be bullied by an older boy (Frost) who is an unrelenting bastard, continually verbally and physically abusing them. The boys decide to get help from who they think is a bodyguard, Drillbit Taylor (Wilson), but who actually is a bum. Cue him going into the school to try and prevent them from being beaten up.

The acting in the film is good. The boys are onscreen for the majority of the movie and they do an excellent job with both the humour of the text and reality of the text. Friskin the bully also plays his role excellently, as you really begin to hate his character. For me the problem was Wilson, his character not only was raher grating at times, also had a weird moral compass. The concept that he feels it is alright to beat someone up as long as they are 18 for me doesn't seem right, and it made me dislike his character.

The plot is obvious and at times clichéd but the script, written by Seth Rogen (Knocked Up), is fresh and at times vey funny. As I said most of what is encompassed when the 3 boys are on screen, particularly the chemistry between Roberts and Gentile. They both have an excellent onscreen relationship and play off each other very well. I wouldn't be surprised if in a few years these two become part of the new generation of american comedy.

Overall this film left me feeling underwhelmed. Considering it is an Owen Wilson movie I expected better. Wilson is at his best when he is partnered with either Wes Anderson or Ben Stiller. Lets hope in future he stays on that road, because it is he that let this movie down for me.

★★☆☆☆

Mamma Mia

Mamma Mia (2008) starring Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Julie Walters, Dominic Cooper, Amanda Seyfried, and Christine Baranski.

Well...what to say...beforehand...well with this being the biggest movie of 2008 there has been so much hype around it that I almost felt I didn't need to see it. What had I heard...Pierce can't sing for toffee, Meryl is fantastic, and Colin is just very unconvincing in the part he plays (being general to avoid spoilers!). My fears about this movie were that it was going to be the ultimate chick flick...that is until my father returned from seeing it at the cinema and said that he loved it. This confused matters and yet I still decided to steer clear of it, until now...when I could see it for free.

Set on a colorful Greek island, the plot serves as a background for a wealth of ABBA songs. A young woman, Sophie (Seyfried) about to be married (Cooper) discovers that any one of three men (Broson, Firth and Skarsgård) could be her father. She invites all three to the wedding without telling her mother, Donna (Streep), who was once the lead singer of Donna and the Dynamos. In the meantime, Donna has invited her backup singers, Rosie (Walters) and Tanya (Baranski).

The film was a joyful happy go-lucky film that cannot help to make you smile. The toe-tapping tunes of ABBA make you smile and grin. It is easy to see that the cast loved making the film and that spreads into those who watch the film. The plot is fluid and it flows well, the characters are well rounded which helps to add to the fun exciting atmosphere.

What makes this movie worth watching? Streep, Walters and Baranski carry this movie. They are all fantastic in it. To think that Streep was 58 when it was filmed shows how absolutely brilliant she is in the film. She throws herself around the screen which only draws the audience more into it. Her singing is also fantastic. Baranski is another stellar singer and also dancer. Whereas Walters adds a fantastic comedic touch and her presence in this film is wonderful. Seyfried is also a real find in this movie. The only other movie that springs to mind that I have sene her in is Mean Girls, where she plays a dumb ditzy blonde, completely different to this character

However when it comes to the rest of the cast I feel it begins to collapse. Firth is so unconvincing as Harry, Skarsgård at times looks completely uncomfortable and Brosnan is worryingly bad as Sam, and not just because of the singing. The male trio that make up the bulk of the plot fumble and stumble towards the end of the movie.

So all in all the movie is ok. Streep et al are stunning, Brosnan et al awful. It is a fun happy clappy toe tapping movie that will lift your spirits but it is nothing more than that. Watch if you do not want to think!

★★☆☆☆

Little Children

Little Children (2006) starring Kate Winslet, Patrick Wilson, Jennifer Connelly, Noah Emmerich and Jackie Earle Haley.

So before...what was I expecting from the film? I had heard comparisons to Madame Bovery...a kind of sexual awakening story set in American suburbia and because of this I feared that maybe they were trying too hard with what they were attempting to do. The cast looked brilliant, especially having seen both Wilson and Earle Haley recently in Watchmen. I was very excited to see Earle Haley play a paedophile, looking back at what I've just written that sounds so very wrong, but because I have so much respect for him as an actor I was excited for what he was going to do with the character. So all in all, although I had my doubts, I was feeling excited about this film and the potential that it had.

Sarah Pierce (Winslet) is in a loveless marriage, long days with her young daughter at the park and the pool, wanting more. Brad Adamson (Wilson) is a househusband, married to a flinty documentary filmmaker (Connelly). Ronnie (Earle Haley) is just out of prison - two years for indecent exposure - living with his mother; Larry (Emmerich) is a retired cop, fixated on driving Ronnie away. Sarah and Brad connect, a respite of adult companionship at the pool. Ronnie and Larry have their demons. Brad should be studying for the bar; Larry misses his job; Ronnie's mom thinks he needs a girlfriend. Sarah longs to refuse to be trapped in an unhappy life.

The plot summary that I have given for this film is in some ways not as detailed as some that I give but I do not want to spoil the movie. In previous plot summaries I fear I may have given too much away. So from now on I will be more courteous to my readers! :)

With all the potential I was expecting from it I was nearly reduced to tears, however, when the first thing I heard in the film was a voice-over. This is often the kiss of death for films, very few get the commentary right and therefore it turns it into a total mess, which was very worrying. BUT this film pulls it off brilliantly. The voice over is both funny, interesting and at times very poigniant.

The acting was fantastic, with Earle Haley coming out on top by far. His performance as Ronnie is incredible, as not only does he draw out disgust from the audience but he manages to balance that with sympathy. He is an incredible actor and I look forward now to any film that he is in, especially Nightmare on Elm Street, his turn as Freddie Krueger could be a seminal performance.

The children in the movie also do it brilliantly, with Sadie Goldstein, who plays Lucy Pierce, standing out. Her role in the film ties in directly with the psyche of her mother drawing out the feelings that she has.

Overall I was highly impressed with the film. Both the acting and plot were fantastic. Winslet and Wilson carry the film very well with Earle Haley deserving numerous nominations that he got for his role. It is only a shame that he did not get any of the awards he was nominated for. This is a real thought provoking piece that pulls you in many different ways. Well worth a watch, if only just for Earle Haley's performance.

Psycho

Psycho (1998) starring Vince Vaughn, Anne Heche, Julianne Moore, Viggo Mortensen, and William H. Macy.

Having seen and utterly loved and fallen in love with the original Psycho, by my all time favourite director Alfred Hitchcock, I was slightly nervous about watching this film. What could they possibly do to improve on this film, how on earth could they make it better and more importantly why on earth are they making a remake??

In some ways I feel the usual way of writing my reviews is null and void today, it is here usually that I place a summary of the plot for people, albeit something that that is unspoilerific. However with this movie I am torn...one of the most famous movies and famous plots...should I do a summary...thinking about it I feel it would be amiss not to do one so here goes.

Marion Crane(Heche), who after stealing $40,000 cash, leaves town and ends up at the Bates Motel where she meets the troubled Norman Bates (Vaughn) who seems to be dominated by his mother. Crane is killed, in one of the most famous scenes in cinema history, and along comes her sister (Moore), with detective (Macy) and Marion's boyfriend (Mortensen) in tow, who sets out to discover what has happened to her missing sister.

What to say about this remake? Well it is exactly that, a remake. Not any old remake though, this remake is done pretty frame for frame, shot for shot. It seems that Gus Van Sant has created a near perfect carbon copy of Hitchcock's original. As this is the case how on earth can I criticise it, or the director for that matter. Van Sant has made the decision to give a near exact replica to his audience and because of that the film is fantastic.

The actors in the roles are cast perfectly. Vaughn is brilliant as the psychotic Bates, with the cast built around him. The one thing that this film has improved on is that it did not go on to deliver 3 sequels that were completely unecessary, though going on how long it took for Psycho II to arrive we have another 12 years to wait till I am proved right.

The brilliance of this film is that instead of Van Sant trying to remake the wheel he has created a film that instead remaking the film and destroying the essence of it he has created a film that salutes Hitchcocks original. In my view this film will have brought a new audience to both Psycho and Hitchcock. If this is the case then I have no qualms and a lot of praise for this film. It's only fault is that Hitchcock did not direct, and that is why I can't give the film 5 stars. Harsh but I think ultimately fair.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

The Bank Job

The Bank Job (2008) starring Jason Statham and Saffron Burrows.

Pre film thoughts...well I have heard a mixture of things about this film, some say good, some say bad, so my mind was undecided about this movie before I saw it. Based on a true story it had potential but at the same time I feared that they would take it too far and it would become over the top and far too actiony for my liking.

The plot revolves around Terry Leather (Statham) a low-level artful dodger type crook who scams people by turning the clocks back on cars. Returning into his life comes Martine Love (Burrows) who suggests to him that they should rob a bank while the alarm is off for two weeks. So he brings together some friends and off they go to do a once in a lifetime robbery...but there is a catch Burrows really wants to get her hands on some compromising photos of a member of the royal family that are in one of the safe-deposit boxes. What ensues is a cat and mouse tale where the robbers are the most innocent people involved!

This is a slight change from the usual action for Statham and he does surprisingly well in this role. Played with empathy and charisma, he is great to watch on screen. The characters around him are also full and well structured, perhaps because it is based on a true story. The plot to begin with seems slow and clichéd and it felt like it wasn't going anywhere fast, however as you get into the meat of the story it starts to flow and gel together really well.

As I had no major expectations from this movie, I was happily surprised at how good this movie actually was. Initially it seemed clichéd and doomed to a plot that we have seen before but there are areas which take it beyond the clichéd and make it seem more real. The movie has a feel of "Lock, Stock..." or "Snatch" but ultimately it is far more believable than either of them.

Although not the most intelligent film out there this film has enough charm and plot to draw you into it. Statham chose well on this project, and in some ways I hope he is able to balance the two different roles he plays (ridiculously stupid and over the top action heroes [Transporter & Crank] to characters that have more substance and are actually well acted [The Bank Job, London]). Take it from me, if you want an enjoyable night in with a film that balances the action and plot brilliantly check this one out at your local store! It definitely gets my vote!

★★★★☆

Wake up, Ron Burgundy! : The Lost Movie

Wake up, Ron Burgundy!: The Lost Movie (2004) starring Will Ferrell, Christina Applegate, Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, and David Koechner.

I had a lot of hope for this film. Effectively the movie is made up of the bits that weren't put in Anchorman, and that is one of my all time favourite movies. Every line is gold dust and every line gets a laugh, and so to have a movie that has MORE from these brilliant writers, well surely that a winner!

The plot of the film is different it follows on directly from Anchorman, and the core of the movie is about Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) and Ron Burgundy (Ron Burgundy) going for the same story about a group of thieves who call themselves the Alarm Clock. The rivalry between the two reporters plays out as the aim to be the reporter with the winning story.

So...what did I think...not good....not good at all. Although all of the plot is written by the same people, it is pieces of alternate takes and dropped sub-plots, meaning bits the writers and director didn't think were good enough to go in first time. The plot of the movie fumbles and falters towards its ending with at times sections that feel crow-barred into the plot.

Ultimately I was disappointed, considering it is effectively Anchormans little brother. Sections of it are brilliant but unfortunately the bits in between the sections aren't. Basically this is the slimmed down version of Anchorman...but the thing is Anchorman was perfectly toned in the first place!
★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆

Der Untergang

Der Untergang [Downfall] (2004) starring Bruno Ganz, Alexandra Maria Lara, Christian Berkel and Thomas Kretschmann.

The movie's plot revolves around the final days of Adolf Hitler's life (played by Bruno Ganz). Maria Lara plays his last secretary to serve under him, as she gets to see the whole range of emotions that Hitler goes through. His staff are split in half, those who want to stay loyal to the Fuhrer and those who want to preserve the lives of the Germans.

Never before have I seen the portrayal of a tyrant played with such a realness to it. There are times in the film when you feel an honest sympathy for Hitler, not for what he has done, but for the fact that he is so apart from reality and how lost he is in his own mind. This is all down to the acting of Ganz, who delivers a portrayal of Hitler that lets you in on the madness and desperation of Hitler's final hours.

It is an epic story delivered with such an honesty and a realness that urges you to see each of the characters involved as humans and ultimately it is this that causes you to feel so horrified at the end of it all. The portrayal of each character is done with such care and attention. From the loyal but ultimately traitorous Himmler, to the Goebbels family, the mother murdering her children, while her husband plots their own dramatic suicide.

Although hard-going, this film is near faultless. The direction is fluid and flowing and draws you into the story. In Downfall we have a masterpiece, where all the pieces have fallen together perfectly. It is important to realise that this is in no way close to a special effect ladened films that the current climate is drowning in. Downfall is a wonderfully written movie that I hope will out live all of the blockbuster currently out there.

The Spiderwick Chronicles

The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008), starring Freddie Highmore, Sarah Bolger, Mary-Louise Parker, Nick Nolte, and David Strathairn.

Having heard nothing but good things about the series of books but not having read any of them, I was looking forward to seeing this movie. With a rich mythology from the books, the depth of characters and plot was clear to see.

Highmore plays Jared and Simon Grace, and Jared finds a field guide of mystical and magical creatures written by Arthur Spiderwick (Strathairn), his Great Great Uncle. Opening the book leads to an Ogre called Mulgarath (voiced by Nick Nolte) planning a full scale attack on the house to get hold of the book and destroy the human kind.

Although clichéd, the film has a great child-friendly feeling to it. Freddie Highmore plays two characters with two different and realistic personalities. Sarah Bolger plays sister to Highmores twins, and Mary Louise Parker the sceptical mother. All of the characters are realistically played and fantastically acted.

When doing the research for this review I found that the director of this, Mark Waters, has directed both Mean Girls and Freaky Friday, two films that hit the adult and the child sense of humour fantastically well. Here with Spiderwick, he does not disappoint, great SFX great plot and a fantastic cast that has created what would be the start of a good series of films. However it is a shame to discover, through research for this review, that they crammed all 5 books into one movie, similar in some ways to what they did with Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. However even though they distilled 5 books worth of material into a 107 minute movie, it still is a thoroughly enjoyable film. The acting is good and the special effects and great too!

So all in all i would recommend this movie, it is a lazy Saturday or Sunday afternoon movie, one where you don't have to think much.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008), starring Jason Segel, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis, and Russell Brand.

So reactions about the film before seeing it, I had seen the trailers and heard that it was one of the funniest movies of last year. In fact, I hadn't heard a bad word about it. So I went into the film with quite high expectations, unfortunately I was severely let down.

The plot revolves around a guy called Peter (Jason Segal) who gets dumped by his girlfriend, Sarah Marshall (Kirsten Bell). Then 3 weeks later, he tries to get over the breakup by going in holiday to Hawaii, only to find that she is there with her new boyfriend, Aldous Snow (Russel Brand). He meets a kind receptionist (Mila Kunis) who tries to help him remember his fun side again. The plot continued to amble forward in an aimless fashion to a rather obvious conclusion.

To say this movie wasn't funny would be an insult to other unfunny movies. It took 40mins for me to laugh out loud, which is a very bad sign for a film billing itself. I then I waited another 60 minutes for another laugh that never came.

It's not even as if the acting is bad, as all the characters were very believeable and the chemistry between the characters was very real. The problem was the script just fell at the first hurdle, it was just not funny and at times it was even highly vulgar. What's worse is that there are some really funny talented comedic actors in this doing cameos, e.g. Paul Rudd and Jonah Hill

I found this thoroughly hard to to rate, with the acting being so great. However the fact that it is billed as a comedy is wrong on so many levels. Surely a film that has only one laugh out loud moment cannot be called a comedy. This movie was a waste of 2 hours of my time that I will never get back.

My advice: steer clear of this highly confused, frustrated and vulgar film.

★ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep

The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (2007), starring Emily Watson, Alex Etel, Brian Cox, David Morrissey and Ben Chaplin.

Before I had watched the film, I had visions of this being like a E Nesbit's 5 Children and It, as it is about this mythical and magical creature of Scottish legend. The tale of a boy who finds a creature that ultimately makes life better for all of those around him through his magic, instead we are delivered with a very different story written by Dick King Smith. Other reviews I have read have likened the movie to E.T., I guess because the boy is harbouring a forbidden pet, however, I feel The Water Horse plays out more like Free Willy.

The plot set in WWII is focuses around a young boy called Angus (Alex Etel) who one day finds what he thinks is a big rock, for it to hatch when he gets it home. The handyman who comes to live in the house, Lewis (Ben Chaplin), tells him that he has found a water horse, a mythical creature that bestows magical powers, who he names Crusoe. Angus persuades both Lewis and his sister to keep it a secret from his mother (Emily Watson), who would tell him to get rid of it without question. Along come the British army who take over the house, led by David Morrissey, and start to threaten Angus' secret pet. Not only does Morrissey's introduction provoke fear in Angus but it also provides the beginnings of a love triangle involving him, Chaplin and Watson. In the end the story ploughs towards a Free Willy ending with Crusoe escaping the confines of the Loch to go out to sea.

All in all this film neither reaches the heights of joy and originality of Free Willy nor portrays the deep seated emotions that lie at the heart of E.T. What typifies this movie is the film writers curse that is the flashback. The story begins and ends with Brian Cox's character who is telling the story to 2 American visitors. This makes the film feel tiresome and confused about the sort of film it wants to be.

At times it strives for light-hearted comedy, which then quickly tries to morph itself into a poignant tale of loss. The acting is abhorently medicore, with some cringe worthy dodgy accents appearing every now and then. For me the only point to seeing this movie is the CG water horse that Weta Digital created. Weta are famous for their work on Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia, and they do not disappoint with this film. The creature is life-like and at times I had to remind myself that it was actually a CG creation!

To say the movie is truly awful would be a disservice to the film industry, however, a un-original script with poor acting draws away from what could have been a heart-warming classic, especially considering the pedigree of the source materials author. If you are looking for a movie of this kind stick to either Free Willy or ET, two films that all the family can enjoy!
★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆

Jumper

Jumper (2008), starring Hayden Christensen, Rachel Bilson, Jamie Bell and last, but by no means least, Samuel L. Jackson.

On first hearing about this movie I was thoroughly excited by it, the concept although not original showed a lot potential, the actors involved had a mixture of new up and coming (Rachel Bilson), actors who have potential but hasn't blossomed yet (Hayden Christensen, and Jamie Bell) and a favourite and established star (Samuel L. Jackson). Not only that but the director (Doug Liman) has shown a lot of potential in the past with action in the past(The Bourne Identity and Mr and Mrs Smith).

With the actors and concept that I heard about I was only too eager to see the trailer come out. The trailer produced more excitement and some stellar visual action sequences. More hype and more excitement ensued. Unfortunately I missed it at the cinema, and from there it went downhill. Rumours abounded that all the good bits were shown in the trailer. I, however, tried to stay hopeful but I have to admit, because of those rumours it did put me off buying or even renting it. So I waited and waited till it came on TV. This weekend Sky Movies Premier had Jumper as one of it's movies of the week. So this morning, when it came on Anytime I got up and watched it....

The film follows David (Hayden Christensen) as he learns he can teleport. He leaves his childhood sweetheart Millie (Rachel Bilson) behind and moves to the city. Initially using it to rob banks he soon learns that he is being hunted by Samuel L. Jackson's Roland. Soon David finds he is not alone in his ability when he meets Griffin (Jamie Bell). The majority of the action comes through the "jumpers" being followed by Jackson's Paladins as they hunt them down and try and kill them.

Christensen is an uncharasmatic lead role in this film but it is not just his fault that he fails to make his mark on the film, rather shockingly David S. Goyer did the screenplay for this film. Who, some of you may say....although you may not know the name you will know the movies he has written. He wrote the story for The Dark Knight, and scripts for Blade, Dark City, and Batman Begins. Although he may have had some dodgy ones in between (Blade Trinity and The Crow: City of Angels) he has the potential to be one of the best scriptwriters out there in my opinion. Jumper, however, is one of his poorer efforts. The dialogue comes out clichéd and wooden and the plot is so holey that it might as well have been written by the Pope himself! There are glimpses of brilliance but only glimpses, for instance when Bell hints at the long past of Jumpers vs Paladins. That should have been developed further and could have driven the start of the film instead of the pointless back story of David, nothing in my view could have saved his character.

Jamie Bell was the raison d'etre for me. His character, Griffin, seemed deeper and fleshed out more, it may have been because of the mystery and some might say lack of depth. Whichever it is I found Bell both believably and eagerly waited for him to return to screen, which is a shock when Jackson is in the film and he was letdown by a very very poorly developed character.

So this leads me to the plot, jumbled and a mess in my view. Conceptually it had so much possibility, but it seems that Goyer or Liman decided they wanted to rush it into production. This is a film that could have been so much more but was severely let down. I really do hope that Jumper 2 will live up to the potential that Jumper showed.
★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆

Nim's Island

Nim's Island (2008), starring Jodie Foster, Abigail Breslin, and Gerard Butler.

The film follows Abigail Breslin's character of the title, who lives with her scientist father (Gerard Butler) with her 3 island animal companions, a pelican, a sea lion and a CG lizard, called Fred. Nim loves the novels of Alex Rover, an Indiana Jones/Rick O'Connel type character, who travels the world looking for adventure and finding trouble. Jodie Foster plays Alexandra Rover, the agrophobic author of said novels, who talks to her creation in her head, played also by Gerard Butler. She gets in touch with Nim by accident and in response to a plea from Nim sets off to help her out, despite going through palpitations that would need a very big paper bag to calm her down!
Foster plays this role fantastically reminding the public that she can do something other than her usual, of late, intense natured acting. For me she carries the movie and it is a joy to see her do something more comic for a change.

Butler plays his role fantastically as well, toeing the line between comic for the role of Alex Rover and dramatic when he is lost at sea as the father. The chemistry that Butler and Foster have needs to be reused in another film in my view.

Out of the three it is Abigail Breslin in the title role that fails to bring the magic to the screen that she delivered with Little Miss Sunshine and also Definitely Maybe. The majority of the laughs while she is onscreen come from the animals, mainly the sealion.

The movie holds together well, even if you are fooled into believing pirates are gonna ransack the island, but overall it didn't have the adult factor that it could have done. The solid and humouress appearence of Foster is what makes this movie worth watching.
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

The Film Observer

This will be a blog that is dedicated to film reviews. Although I thoroughly enjoy Twitter, I at times find it difficult to get a full review into 140 characters. So any tweet that reviews a film will also have a blog that reviews the film as well.

So I would like to welcome you all to this new film blog, something that I have always enjoyed doing and now can publish on the internet! :)

So for anyone reading this...enjoy the reviews that I put on. It won't be a daily occurence, obviously but I will blog whenever I watch a new film! :)

Please also feel free to comment on any review and I will try and reply to them! :)