Perfect Sense, Melancholia, Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World

It's Apocalypse time!

#1 - PERFECT SENSE

Stars - Ewan McGregor, Eva Green, Denis Lawson, Ewen Bremnar

Director - David McKenzie

Memorable Quote - "Because that is how life goes on. Like that."

Review - This film is about everyone in the world's sense disappearing one by one, and the way that it deals with the subject is very interesting. We too are stripped of our every sense as the film goes on: from the moment that the sense of hearing is lost there is no sound other than the calm sounding narration which describes throughout the film what is happening and what impact it had on them. It is an interesting concept and it is executed well; however, I found it to be quite drab and grey throughout, which almost made it seem as though the end could not come quickly enough! A little more colour early on would have been appreciated to create a nicer tone in the first place. Still, the love story is heart wrenching and must be saluted.  3/5

#2 - MELANCHOLIA

Stars - Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Keifer Sutherland, Alexander Skarsgard, John Hurt, Stellan Skarsgard

Director - Lars Von Trier

Memorable Quote - "This could have been a lot different."

Review - I'm not sure I was as impressed with Melancholia as I wanted to be. I genuinely wanted to enjoy it. From what I had heard I was expecting it to be fantastic. And yet, it just... wasn't. All of the interesting parts of the story were passed by without exploration, while altogether too much time was spent on naval gazing and recreating artistic scenes. The depression was portrayed well, particularly in the bath scene, but the other naked scenes were completely unnecessary and rather detracted from what was going on because it just made you think about how Dunst was getting naked. The beginning and the premonition was just too slow and dreary - a briefer shot for each part would have been better - and it got me off to a bad start in terms fo first impressions. I felt bored, and that is not what I look for in a film. 2/5

#3 - SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD

Stars - Steve Carrell, Keira Knightley

Director - Lorene Scarafia

Memorable Quote - "I'm not sure that the month between my wife leaving me and the end of the world sounds like good timing. Do you?"

Review - This is interesting because it deals with the same kind of subject as Melancholia, but annoyed me a hell of a lot less. I still find Knightley to be irritating as all get out because the girl really cannot act as well as Hollywood thinks she can, and that stands out in this piece besides the always reliable Carrell. We are used to him being the derided loser as well as the comedic turn, but this is something different and we can believe that he really did get the girl not once, but three times. The end is dealt with better than in Melancholia because at least we have a satisfying conclusion, which I will not ruin, and there is even the possibility that others may have survived with the tactics described throughout the scene. Apart from all of this, the dog was the best part of the film as it was absolutely adorable, I could not stop looking at it in every single scene! 4/5

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Get Him To The Greek, Grown Ups, The Other Guys

Comedy special!

#1 - GET HIM TO THE GREEK

Stars - Jonah Hill, Russell Brand, Rose Byrne, Elisabeth Moss, Sean Combs

Director - Nicholas Stoller

Memorable Quote - "Time to get our mind-fuck on."

Review - This is a laugh out loud film which I really thoroughly enjoyed. The fake rock songs scattered throughout are genius, and while Russell Brand may be playing his usual rock star character let's not forget that this is a comedy persona, so it's not as though he isn't acting - he's just typecast. Anyway, this is much better than his previous outings and it just keeps getting funnier, with particular highlights including the whirlwind chaos of the casino scene and some of the ridiculous fake music videos. This is worth a watch when you want to be spitting your drink across the room in uncontrollable laughter. 5/5

#2 - GROWN UPS

Stars - Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Steve Buscemi, Rob Schneider, Salma Hayek, Kevin James

Director - Dennis Dugan

Memorable Quote - "I want to get chocolate wasted."

Review - Grown Ups is actually hilarious. I did not really expect this to be the case, but  honestly, I laughed through a large amount of it. It's an honest and simple story of families needing to reconnect with each other and with themselves, and under all of the toilet humour there is quite a nice idea. I'm not sure how on earth they keep managing to get Steve Buscemi involved in these Adam Sandler films, but his part is fantastic, reminding one almost of that squirrel from Ice Age and his little sequences that break up the plot scenes. This is a great film for days when you need a pick me up, or when a film that requires too much thought would be taxing. 3.5/5

#3 - THE OTHER GUYS

Stars - Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Eva Mendes, Steve Coogan

Director - Adam Mckay

Memorable Quote - "I'm like a peacock, you gotta let me fly!"

Review - This is also fantastic. I actually went in to it just expecting something which might numb my brain for a while since I was tired, but I found it really funny and the chemistry between Ferrell and Wahlberg is just great. The scene pictured above, also known as the tuna/lion scene, was the moment at which I decided that, yes, this was a brilliant movie which I was enjoying very much; cameo appearances from Samuel L Jackson and The Rock, an ongoing joke about Eva Mendes' character and other women liking Ferrell, and a script that hits all the right notes did not hurt either. 5/5

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Pretty Woman, The Back Up Plan, The Invention of Lying

It's romcom time...


#1 - PRETTY WOMAN

Stars - Julia Roberts, Richard Gere, Hector Elizondo, Laura San Giacamo

Director - Garry Marshall

Memorable Quote - "In case I forget to tell you later, I had a really good time tonight."

Review - This is a classic, and you can tell right away by how good the soundtrack is. Even as someone who was not born when the film came out, I recognised every single song playing in the background, marking this out as a huge part of popular culture at the time. Gere shines in this with a face full of expression and a character that keeps you guessing for quite a while, as Roberts is full of energy and some kind of charm that only a newcomer to Hollywood could bring to the table. Her manners and way of walking complete the characterisation right down to a T, making this a special performance that is, ironically, a far cry from what she normally achieves these days. It is ironic, indeed, to think of the stereotype of the classy woman that she often falls victim to these days! The scene where she returns to the clothes shop where they refused to help her is a classic, and the hotel manager is a real charmer too. The only criticism I could have is how awkward and passionless it seems when they kiss and how much I had to shout OH GOD STOP KISSING OH GOD before they did. 3.5/5

#2 - THE BACK UP PLAN

Stars - Jennifer Lopez, Alex O'Loughlin, Michaela Watkins

Director - Kate Angelo

Memorable Quote - "You stole my cab!"

Review - This one is maybe stretching the boundaries of believability to create a madcap situation, but actually I enjoyed it. I was ill and couldn't eat anything and had to wear five blankets to stop shivering, and this was exactly what I needed to feel better. I actually laughed out loud at a couple of points, and for a nothing of a romcom you can't say fairer than that. Obviously don't go into it expecting Fight Club-esque twists and clever lines, but for the genre it is one of the better ones, and definitely scores well on the ratings list of Lopez movies. It's feel good and it's funny. 4/5

#3 - THE INVENTION OF LYING

Stars - Ricky Gervais, Jennifer Garner, Jonah Hill, Louis C.K., Rob Lowe, a million smaller parts

Director - Ricky Gervais, Matthew Robinson

Memorable Quote - "Ok, you're annoying me. Your voice is shrill. Goodbye."

Review - It seems Gervais has Hollywood in the palm of his hand at the moment, and one wonders how long it can last. This is another outing of the same character that he always plays, and while it is funny it just seems to be another example of "Ricky Gervais in x scenario". The voiceover at the start feels forced and put me off quite a bit, but it does get better. There are some sections where the dialogue sound is removed and this is nicely done, though you almost begin to feel as though the whole "man in the sky" segment is done just to be controversial on purpose - a tactic which I never find impressive. 3/5

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