Tuesday, 25 June 2013

Snitch - A Review

4 Stars - Solid


The Rock and Chalky White both in a film together? I am sold.

Snitch is a drug thriller about The Rock trying to get his son out of prison by helping the D.E.A. arrest some serious players. It is pretty darn good.

The story, inspired by true events, is emotionally charged and really pulls you into the drama, helped out a lot by one of The Rock's best performances to date and a strong supporting cast, featuring Michael K. Williams and Susan Sarandon.

Although I will say this of the writing, there are some very obvious influences of Breaking Bad and The Wire and at times it can almost feel distracting, because you're just getting into a scene, then someone says something straight out of one of these shows and you can't help but notice.

don't be fooled by the poster, this isn't The Rock does Taken
In short, a good solid film, well worth a watch

World War Z - A Review

3.5 Stars - Decent


why is it that whenever zombies attack buildings suddenly set on fire and none of the lights work?

World War Z is a relatively entertaining zombie film. The performances are okay, the zombies are somewhat intimidating while in motion and there's some genuinely tense moments. However it lacks some of the visceral gore and unsettling scares that make the best zombie films work.

The Zombies are good when they move fast and you don't get much of a look at them, but when they're moving slowly and you get close ups on their faces they just look kind of silly and all tension gets lost because you're laughing.

okay, so this might be Sean of the Dead...
In short, I'd say worth a watch, but maybe wait for TV

Friday, 14 June 2013

The Man of Steel - A Review

4 Stars - A Good Start


Faster than a locomotive, able to leap speeding bullets and more powerful than a single bound... or something like that...

Superman is back on the big screen after a good seven years away. This is an attempt to recreate Superman in the modern eye and make him accessible to today's film going audience, and for the most part I'd say it succeeds, though there are a few issues I have with it.

The film has a fairly sombre tone, which works quite well, but sometimes goes a little too far. I'd prefer something a bit more fun from a Superman film. Still the story is decent enough, Superman is given a lot of dignity, the villain is great and the action is, mostly, very good though sometimes it feels like you're just watching CGI.

I Will Chew Scenery!
In short, worth a watch, and worth a sequel, let's see this improve.

Friday, 7 June 2013

After Earth - A Review

1 Star - Really Bad


This isn't so much a film as a vanity project by Will Smith to try and get people to think his son can act... he can't...

This film is incredibly dull, the action isn't exciting the story is boring and predictable, there's a whole bunch of plotholes and Jaden Smith is, as ever, really unlikable.

Also this film says that fear isn't real and you can just stop having fear, which is nonsense. It also mentions Moby Dick a lot, but that, as far as I'm aware, is about obsession and madness, not overcoming fear...

Also Will Smith spends about 80% of this film sitting down speaking without emotion, that is not how you use Will Smith. Will Smith should be up and about filling the screen with his unique energy.

Story by Will Smith: Again, not so much story as way to make his son famous...

In short, don't go see it, it sucks.