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Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Written by: Robert Rodat
Starring: Tom Hanks, Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Matt Damon, Jeremy Davies, Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg
My rating: * * * * 1/2
O, D, W
Directed by: James Wan
Written by: Leigh Whannell
Starring: Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, Monica Potter, Leigh Whannell, Ken Leung
Review: Two men wake up in a grimy old bathroom, chained to the wall, not knowing how or why they ended up there. One is Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes), a doctor and family man with a secret, the other is Adam (Leigh Whannell), a guy who has been watching from the sidelines of life. They are part of a sick game being played by the so-called �Jigsaw Killer�. Some of the scenes are very disturbing, as the movie details the past games of the serial killer through flashbacks. The tension is kept up quite decently as we question who the killer is and wonder how the two men will get out of their predicament, although some of the acting is a bit over-the-top.
Saw has been compared to David Fincher's Seven for obvious reasons, yet it lacks much of the depth and sophistication of Fincher�s film. However, for a pair of first time film-makers on a $1.2 million dollar budget, it is pretty impressive.
My rating: * * * 1/2
H, T, Cr
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Written by: Steven Zaillian, based on the book Schindler's Ark by Thomas Keneally
Starring: Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes
My rating: * * * * *
O, D, W
Directed by: Richard Linklater
Written by: Mike White
Starring: Jack Black, Joan Cusack, Mike White, Robert Tsai, Angelo Massagli, Kevin Clark, Marryam Hassan, Rebecca Brown, Miranda Cosgrove
Review: This movie is modelled on the typical 'inspiring new teacher helps his/her deadbeat class realise their potential' format (think Sister Act 2, Dangerous Minds, etc), only slightly reversed. Dewey Finn (Jack Black) turns his class of prim and proper classical music-playing prep school students into a bunch of hard rocking kids with attitude. Jack Black shows what a talented comedian he is, with his particular brand of energetic humour. He's also not a bad musician, as are the child actors in the movie who are all actually playing the instruments/singing themselves. Overall this is quite an enjoyable and funny movie, especially for fans of rock music, and it's not without a bit of heart as well.
My rating: * * * 1/2
C, Mu
Directed by: Joss Whedon
Written by: Joss Whedon
Starring: Nathian Fillion, Gina Torres, Alan Tudyk, Jewel Staite, Sean Maher, Summer Glau, Ron Glass, Morena Baccarin, Adam Baldwin, Chiwetel Ejiofor, David Krumholtz
Review:
My rating: * * * *
SF, A, D, T
Directed by: David Fincher
Written by: Andrew Kevin Walker
Starring: Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwenyth Paltrow, and Kevin Spacey
My rating: * * * * *
Cr, T, D, M
Go to my page for Seven
Directed by: Frank Darabont
Written by: Frank Darabont
Starring: Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman
My rating: * * * * 1/2
D
Directed by: Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jensen
Written by: Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio, Joe Stillman, Roger Schulman, based on the book by William Steig.
Starring: voices of Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy, and John Lithgow
My rating: * * * 1/2
O, C, An, A, F
Directed by: Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury, Conrad Vernon
Written by: J. David Stem, Joe Stillman and David N. Weiss; characters by William Steig
Starring: the voices of Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy, Antonio Banderas, John Cleese, Julie Andrews, Jennifer Saunders, Rupert Everett
Review: This was an exceedingly funny movie! There are laughs to be had all the way through, and some of the jokes are real corkers (a personal favourite is during a scene with Pinocchio and the gingerbread man). They are also a bit naughty but I think they will go over the heads of the youngsters. The story is also a genuinely good-natured and sweet love story, which focuses on some of the good old-fashioned morals of fables such as true love and what�s on the inside being more important than outward beauty. There are many fairytale references, and Antonio Banderas� Puss in Boots is one of the best. There are also lots of little sight gags and pop culture references to look out for at every turn such as Farbucks and Sir Justin. Oh, and stick around for the credits, there�s an extra scene to look out for too!
My rating: * * * *
C, An, A, R, F
Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
Written by: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, Rory Culkin, Abigail Breslin
My rating: * * * *
T, SF, D
Directed by: Jonathan Demme
Written by: Ted Tally, based on the book by Thomas Harris
Starring: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Ted Levine
My rating: * * * * *
O, T, C
Directed by: Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez, with guest director Quentin Tarantino
Written by: Frank Miller
Starring: Bruce Willis, Clive Owen, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Benecio del Toro
My rating: * * * *
T, H, A, Cr
Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
Written by: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Haley Joel Osment
My rating: * * * * *
D, T, M, SF, H
Directed by: Wallace Wolodarsky
Written by: Joe Jarvis & Greg Coolidge
Starring: Barry Watson, Michael Rosenbaum, Harland Williams
Review: -
My rating: * * *
C, R
Directed by: Jan de Bont
Written by: Graham Yost
Starring: Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock, Dennis Hopper
My rating: * * * *
A
Directed by: Sam Raimi
Written by: David Koepp, based on the comics by Stan Lee and Steven Ditko
Starring: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Willem Dafoe, James Franco
My rating: * * * * 1/2
A, R, SF
Directed by: Sam Raimi
Written by: Alvin Sargent, screen story by Michael Chabon, Miles Millar, Alfred Gough, based on the comic books by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko
Starring: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Alfred Molina, Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons
Review: After much anticipation leading up to the release of the movie, I am glad to say that it was not disappointing. Firstly, and most surprisingly, it was actually a very funny movie. And I mean intentionally funny. There are many moments that cracked me up. However, at the same time, Spider-Man 2 is also has a lot of depth, well-developed characters and some genuinely moving scenes. Somehow, Sam Raimi has managed to combine these different elements without it becoming a huge mess. The first half of the movie is given to both humour and exposition, detailing how Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is coping with being Spider-Man while trying to juggle family and friends, university and a couple of part-time jobs. Most of all, he is dealing with not being able to be with Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst). Eventually he begins to think that maybe he doesn't want to be Spider-Man anymore, and we witness the hero's struggle between wanting his own personal happiness and dealing with the fact that "with great power comes great responsibility". Meanwhile, the movie�s villain is being set up, in the form of Doctor Octavius, who, during a science experiment gone wrong, gets four artificially intelligent metal arms permanently grafted to his body, becoming Doc Ock. The second half of the movie is more given to the confrontations between Spidey and Doc Ock, and Peter Parker�s choices about being Spider-man. Many of the action scenes in this are more exciting than in the first movie, partly due to the improved CGI, and also the capabilities of Doc Ock being faced off against Spider-man�s.
This movie has successfully blended humour, heart and tense action scenes to provide a very entertaining, funny, moving and enjoyable film, one of the best comic-book adaptations I have seen so far.
My rating: * * * * 1/2
A, D, R, SF
Directed by: George Lucas
Written by: George Lucas
Starring: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, and Carrie Fisher
My rating: * * * *
O, SF, A
Directed by: Irvin Kershner
Written by: story by George Lucas, written by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan
Starring: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Alec Guinness, Frank Oz, Anthony Daniels
My rating: * * * *
O, SF, A
Directed by: Richard Marquand
Written by: story by George Lucas, written by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas
Starring: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Alec Guinness, Frank Oz, Anthony Daniels, James Earl Jones, Ian McDiarmid
My rating: * * * 1/2
SF, A
Directed by: George Lucas
Written by: George Lucas
Starring: Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd
My rating: * * *
SF, A
Directed by: George Lucas
Written by: story by George Lucas, written by George Lucas and Jonathan Hales
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson
My rating: * * * 1/2
SF, A, R
Directed by: George Lucas
Written by: George Lucas
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson
Review: The final instalment � EVER � in the Star Wars series has arrived, and it�s done it with a deafening bang, figuratively and metaphorically speaking. As I write this, Revenge of the Sith has already broken box office records, taking $50 million on its opening day alone. In terms of the actual movie, the action starts from the moment the yellow-lettered introduction has finished scrolling up the screen and doesn�t let up til the end.
There is such an air of excitement seeing a Star Wars film on the big screen. When the huge STAR WARS title burst onto the screen accompanied by John Williams� famous score, a cheesy grin spread across my face. This was Star Wars, the last one ever�and I so wanted it to be good. And honestly I wasn�t disappointed. It is better than the last two movies in so many ways. Firstly, the writing got better (although there was one point at which I laughed, probably an exchange between Anakin and Padm�), there was less cheese and less incongruous lines. Hayden Christensen played Anakin much darker and frankly better. They all struggle a bit with some of the dialogue but what would it be without a few dodgy lines; the original films were littered with them and that was half the fun. However, they didn�t really take themselves too seriously; the problem with the last three is that they have tried to be quite serious. It�s only in Revenge of the Sith when it really seems fitting, because the subject matter is much darker. There are a couple of images that aren�t really appropriate for younger audiences (hence the harsher rating than the previous films) and these scenes are actually quite powerful, when the film doesn�t scare of getting into that territory. I won�t say what they are, you�ll know what I�m talking about!
Although we all know what has to happen in this film to link it up with Star Wars Episode IV, that doesn�t detract from the experience. Tension is built up as the film advances, the audience waiting to see why Anakin chooses the dark side, when it will happen and how he will end up in the famous Vader suit. The anticipation builds up the excitement as we wait for everything to come full circle. Sure it has it's flaws (a couple of Vader's lines at the end seem a bit off, and I'm undecided about the tone it finishes on) but all in all, a worthy finish (well, middle) for the most famous movie series ever; it�ll leave you just itching to go and watch Episode IV!
My rating: * * * *
SF, A, D, R
Directed by: Rupert Wainwright
Written by: Tom Lazarus and Rick Ramage
Starring: Patricia Arquette, Gabriel Byrne, Jonathan Pryce
My rating: * * 1/2
T, H
Directed by: Peter and Bobby Farrelly
Written by: Peter and Bobby Farrelly
Starring: Matt Damon, Greg Kinnear, Eva Mendes, Cher
My rating: * * *
C
Directed by: Bryan Singer
Written by: Michael Dougherty & Dan Harris, story by Bryan Singer, Michael Dougherty & Dan Harris
Starring: Brandon Routh, Kate Bosworth, James Marsden, Kevin Spacey, Parker Posey
Review: Superman Returns sees the Man of Steel return to Earth after having disappeared for five years to search for his home planet, Krypton. In his absence, the world has moved on. Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth) now has a fianc� (James Marsden) and a young son; she has even produced a Pulitzer Prize-winning article titled �Why the World Doesn�t Need Superman�. But the state of the world says the opposite. Soon it�s evident that Superman (here played by newcomer Brandon Routh) is still a pretty handy guy to have around in a crisis. This is especially so since Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey), recently released from prison, is busy concocting new and diabolical plans befitting of a superhero-movie villain.
For me the movie got off to a slightly clunky start, or at any rate, wasn�t immediately engaging, but it very soon picked up pace and sucked me right into the story. There were some wonderfully choreographed action sequences, the first being a fantastic mid-air plane rescue. This first instance of Superman saving the day really signaled his arrival back on Earth.
Besides the action, there was a very sweet and engaging emotional core that never got too cheesy. I don�t want to ruin the story for anyone so I won�t go into too much depth but I enjoyed watching how Superman struggled with returning to Earth and the way he related to Lois and her new family.
Some have said that Brandon Routh as Clark Kent/Superman doesn�t have much depth but I thought he did a decent job � it�s hard to give believable depth to such an icon. Kate Bosworth also did a fine job as Lois Lane, although I found Parker Posey�s turn as Kitty Kowalski (Lex Luthor�s lady companion) funnier and more compelling, small a role as it was. As for the arch nemesis himself, Kevin Spacey provided most of the film�s laughs as Lex. We all know he can play evil very well, but it�s still enjoyable to watch.
Invariably, the film progressed towards the slightly ridiculous or laughable at times, but that�s hard to avoid in a superhero movie when you�re trying to translate the sort of �innocence� of the old comic books to the big screen of today. On the whole, Bryan Singer has done an excellent job of returning Superman to the big screen after nearly 20 years� absence. The film, while running for 2 � hours, still left me wanting to see more of Superman; I for one don�t mind if he sticks around a bit longer.
My rating: * * * *
D, A, R
reviewed July 2006
Directed by: Morgan Spurlock
Written by: Morgan Spurlock
Starring: Morgan Spurlock
Review: A documentary in which director Morgan Spurlock goes on a 30-day 'McDiet' - eating only McDonalds for 3 meals a day. This aims to entertain, no doubt, not just be informative, so I judge this not strictly as a doco. However, while it's funny, it also makes some important points. Because this movie has caused so much fuss and has been seen by so many people, it has actually helped to greatly raise awareness about the huge obesity epidemic in the US. When you see this movie, you'll realise its not something to be taken lightly, with obesity only second to smoking as the major cause of preventative death in the US. It is scary to see what the kids in elementary schools are eating, and the kind of culture that promotes the consumption of fast food. Visual demonstrations such as animations help to make clear some of the statistics while watching a man get his stomach surgically reduced in size in a very graphic illustration. If this film helps make people more aware of the dangers of an unhealthy lifestyle then good for you, Morgan Spurlock.
My rating: * * * *
Documentary
Directed by: Stephen Gaghan
Written by: Stephen Gaghan, partially based on the book by Robert Baer
Starring: George Clooney, Matt Damon, Alexander Siddig, Chris Cooper, Jeffrey Wright, Christopher Plummer
Review:
My rating: * * * *
Cr, T, O