Prometheus
Review coming soon
Untouchable
(27.09.13) - Review coming soon
Hobo With A Shotgun
(27.09.13) - Review coming soon
The Cutting Edge
(25.09.13) - Review coming soon
Les Miserables
Review coming soon
Star Wars - The Phantom Menace
Review coming soon
P2
Review coming soon
Uncle Buck
Review coming soon
Hellraiser III - Hell On Earth
(11.09.13) - A young reporter, tired of doing fluffy "filler" reports stumbles across the story that will make her career, when she finds a young man rushed into hospital covered in hooks and chains. Following the trail of the box and tracing it back to an egotistical young nightclub owner, who has an interest in he occult and the bizarre, she starts to uncover the story of Kirsty and the Ceonnobites. But Pinhead is trying to resurrect himself through a statue and with the nightclub owners help, Pinhead is resurrected and sets out in his determination to recover the puzzle box to his possession and bring about hell on Earth. In this second sequel the story returns to the realms of reality, which stands it in better stead than the second film, but it is still nowhere near the original. The story is your average mid 90's horror film - with a slow build up which leads to a decidedly average pay-off. Once again the film is nothing special, but passable entertainment for 90 mins, even if is pretty generic in it's story, direction and presentation. In summary - it was OK, but nothing special.
Berlin 36
(10.09.13) - As the 1936 Berlin Olympics approach, America threatens to boycott the Olympics because Hitler has banned Jews from taking part. In a plot to demonstrate Hitler's claim that the Aryan race is the master race, but yet to guarantee the involvement of the USA in the games, the German's train the country's number one female high jumper who happens to be Jewish. But in order to ensure that Germany does not see a Jew is better than an Aryan, they recruit another young female high jumper, but the secret plot became one of the biggest scandals ever to rock the Olympic Games. This foreign language film, based on a true story, was much better than I anticipated. Although it had to look and feel of a "made foe TV movie" and was the kind of thins you would find on a Saturday afternoon, it was actually really good. The secret plot was not too hard to spot once you started to watch the film, but that didn't detract from the enjoyment. The performances were all functional from he cast, but the real draw here was the story, which was engaging (although slightly clichéd at times in it's presentation). It was actually quite a touching film and the tragic relationship between the two high jumpers was sensitively handled. All in all, an interesting, story driven film and a thought provoking piece of little known history. Surprisingly good.
District 13: Ultimatum
(07.09.13) - Three years after Leito and Damien return to District 13 to foil a political plot to rile the rival gangs into a pattern of self destruction, whereby infighting leads to the district being evacuated and blown apart, taking the undesirables with it and giving the opportunity for the district to be rebuilt as a middle class neighbourhood. But with Damien framed and imprisoned, it is up to Leito to free him and for the two of them to unite the gangs against a common enemy - the French Government. This film was more of the same as the first - namely, high octane chase scenes, excellently choreographed hand to hand combat and some breath taking parkour which leaves you open mouthed in awe. I thoroughly enjoyed the film 0 with it's over the top storyline, action and it's ability to know that it is nothing other than an excuse for set piece after set piece. For some reason, and I still prefer the first film, probably because upon the initial viewing of the first one, I really didn't know what to expect and it blew me away. With this one, although it is more of the same, it just doesn't quite reach the heights of the first film. That said, it is still a very good movie which is well worth a watch.
Friday Night Lights
(06.09.13) - In small-town Texas, the entire community grinds to a halt when the Friday Night Lights come on - the floodlights for the local college football team, where the young players get a taste of notoriety and where there is every pressure on the coach to bring home the trophy. The story follows the ups and downs of the team and it's players, all young men facing their personal issues in their home life and coming together on the field as they battle for state championships. The film was better than I thought. As someone who is not that familiar with American Football, or it's rules, I confess to finding the sports sections just a collection of men in helmets pushing each other and tackling someone else to the ground. But that aside, as I watched the first 20 mins, I thought that I would not enjoy it, but I have to admit to getting suckered in to the whole thing. The story had the usual clichés in it - the kid being pushed too hard by the drunken father who used to be a star player; the star player suffering a serious injury and covering it up to enable him to take the field etcetera, but in the end the film was engaging and really drew me in, much more than I expected it to. Billy Bod Thornton gives an excellent performance as the coach and the supporting cast of young talent were all good too. What transpired was a better than average sport film, despite me now really having a clue what was going on on the field.
Young Guns
(06.09.13) - A young Billy The Kid is taken in by a kindly old man, who runs a ranch of misfits and troubled youths. Teaching the young men religion, table manners and reading, they keep themselves to themselves until a land dispute and corruption take over, leading to his murder. The young boys are appointed as deputies and set off to avenge the death of their mentor. This western was actually as good as I remember. Not being a huge fan of the genre, I saw this film many years ago, and enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Re-buying it on DVD, I wasn't sure if it would hold up, but it did. With fairly decent performances from the brat pack cast, the film had it's moments. The whole thing was cliché ridden, and had every western film staple in it - the corrupt politician the token "good Indian and the gunslinging - but at the end of the day, this was a very enjoyable film which I would describe as a "lite" western for those who don't like westerns. I remember the second one being better than the first, so I only hope that that lives up to expectations.
Hellbound - Hellraiser II
(04.09.13) - Following on from the night of horror, Kirsty Cotton wakes up in the Channard institute, a hospital for those with mental health problems. But her treating physician has ulterior notices and a string interest in he occult. Determined to unlock the secrets of the box himself and to experience the delights of the Cennobites himself, Channard resurrects Kirsty's stepmother - Julia. Recruiting the help of a junior doctor and a fellow patient, Kirsty journeys into the depths of hell to rescue her father's soul and confront the Cennobites one more time. This sequel was average watching. I used to really like it when I was younger, but it has not aged well. The special effects are slightly dated. it tired too hard to retread the first film for the first half, but ends up looking like a poor imitator of it;s predecessor. The story then takes a turn into the realms of real fantasy, running around the corridors and labyrinth of hell. Here the film departs from what made the first film so good, by leaving "reality" and falling into the trap of trying to hard to be something else, which leaves it looking very early nineties. Overall, not a great film, but not a terrible one either. it was just alright.
Grease
(01.09.13) - Sandy, a prim and proper new girl arrives at Rydell High School, after a summer romance with soft, sensitive Danny. But unbeknown to her, Danny is the leader of the cool, grease-monkey's - The T Birds. As Danny tried to keep his bravado with his school friends, he tries to win the heart of Sandy, who is going through her own high school transformation when she joins The Pink Ladies. But with the usual teenage problems of girls, guys, cars and hanging out, will the mismatched pair ever recapture those summer nights? This classic musical was good fun. With a soundtrack that is instantly recognisable, energetic dance routines and classic songs, what is there not to love about this film? It has dated slightly, but the songs remain as catchy as ever, the film bounces along and the whole thing was great fun.