Posts Tagged ‘Film’
1
Jul
Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: Film, Man, Movie, Nolan, of, Review, snyder, steel, superman. Leave a comment
Here it is: The latest big and blockbusting effort to make Superman relevant to the masses again. I saw it four days ago.
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Starring: Henry Cavill, Michael Shannon, Amy Adams
Director: Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen)
Rating: M
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Man of Steel was one of my most anticipated films of 2013 and it had been so for a while, despite the fact that I am not a comic book reader and never have been. There were just so many fascinating questions to be answered – could Christopher Nolan‘s influence on the Superman mythos translate into another superlative movie despite the unavoidable need for the inclusion of superpowers? Would General Zod prove a worthy villain in yet another reboot of the character? And how would Zack Snyder‘s post-Sucker Punch direction factor into things? Having seen it now, when all is said and done, it turns out Man of Steel is a rather difficult film to review. Or at least to score. It has been tormenting me for days.
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22
Jun
Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: brad, Film, Movie, pitt, Review, war, world, z, zombies. Leave a comment
Three of my most anticipated films of the year came out this week. Here’s the first of them.
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Starring: Brad Pitt, Mereille Enos, Fana Mokoena
Director: Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, Quantum of Solace)
Rating: M
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It’s a wonder Brad Pitt‘s new zombie virus outbreak film World War Z has even come out in cinemas, given its well documented production troubles. The script, adapted from a well received but difficult to film novel trilogy, was almost completely re-written and re-shot along its tumultuous journey to our screens. It was only the determination and stubbornness of Pitt‘s production team that allowed it to scrape through. And at the end of the day I’m glad it did.
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16
May
Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: abrams, darkness, Film, into, jj, Review, star, trek. Leave a comment
I did something very similar to my The Expendables experience to accommodate this blockbuster release; I only watched the first Star Trek film the night before seeing its sequel.
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Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Benedict Cumberbatch
Director: JJ Abrams (Mission: Impossible 3, Super 8)
Rating: M
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At the start of this week I held the same position on Star Trek as I always had: I couldn’t care less. I had always been a Star Wars fan first and foremost and anything that Trek did was in my mind vastly inferior. It couldn’t possibly hope to match the excitement and grand operatic scale of George Lucas‘ brainchild franchise, and no matter how iconic the characters of Trek had become over time, they didn’t hold a candle to the likes of Darth Vader, Yoda and the like. But, like many other Star Wars fans the world over, my attention was forcibly grabbed recently by the news that JJ Abrams, the director of the Star Trek reboot of 2009, would be in charge of Disney’s upcoming Star Wars trilogy. So I watched the 2009 movie on Blu-Ray, was promptly stunned by its quality, then went to see its freshly released sequel in theatres the very next day. And boy, do I think Star Wars is in good hands now.
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27
Mar
Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: Film, great, oz, powerful, raimi, Review, sam. Leave a comment
Man, there is a lot to say about this one. I saw it two days ago, though it’s been in Aussie cinemas for a couple of weeks already.
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Starring: James Franco, Michelle Williams, Mila Kunis
Director: Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead, Spider-Man)
Rating: PG
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Expectation is a funny and powerful thing when it comes to movies. When I first saw the trailer for Oz the Great and Powerful, I was quick to dismiss it as a stylistic rip-off of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. Considering that film got precisely two things right (Johnny Depp‘s performance and Danny Elfman‘s score) I wasn’t optimistic and didn’t make any plans to see Oz at all. A couple of intriguing reviews later, though, and I was ready to give it a chance. What I got was something quite unexpected and something that arguably does Alice better than Alice.
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26
Jan
Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: django, Film, Review, tarantino, unchained. 1 comment
Time to kick off a new year of reviews. The latest from one of Hollywood’s most successfully quirky directors has finally been released in Australia – two days ago in fact.
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Starring: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio
Director: Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Inglorious Basterds)
Rating: MA15+
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A new Quentin Tarantino movie is usually something of an event these days. The infamously subversive lover of genre film only has eight full directing credits to his name, and each one of those movies tackles a different pocket of cinematic history with an enjoyable brashness that only fleetingly conceals a deep reverence for the medium. His eighth, the recently released Django Unchained, is no different in this regard. While it may be flawed, the film ticks all the boxes that make a Tarantino flick so unique and so enjoyable. In my book, that makes it a winner.
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25
Dec
Posted by vagrantesque in Best of 2012, Lists, Movies. Tagged: 2012, Best, Film, Movie, scenes, sequences, Year. Leave a comment
There’s nothing like a great film scene. When you’re sitting in the theatre and something happens onscreen to make you lean forward in your seat, or sit bolt upright, or cower into a fetal position, that’s what going to the movies is all about. In 2012, I experienced quite a few of those moments. Here they are, arranged in convenient order for your reading pleasure. Please note that while I won’t be going out of my way to include spoilers, the very fact that I am talking about impactful scenes within movies should suggest the kind of caution with which you might want to approach this list.
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VR BEST OF 2012 DISCLAIMER
This list represents my opinion only. I am not asserting any kind of superiority or self-importance by presenting it as I have. My opinion is not fact. If you actually agree with me 100%, that’s scary. You have been warned, fanboys.
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10. Sky Ball – Chronicle
Chronicle is a film with some pretty dark interpretations of the age-old “What would it be like if normal teenagers actually got superpowers?” question. Yet the most memorable scene of the movie for me was the joyous initial expression of physical freedom in which the three main characters engage soon after recieving their new telekinetic abilities. Once they learn to levitate themselves, the wonders of flight are shown in all their shackle-less glory through a wonderfully shot sequence culminating in a sky-high game of catch. It really feels like you’re there, thanks to the film’s “found footage” gimmick.
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13
Mar
Posted by vagrantesque in Misc, Movies. Tagged: 100, Film, Movies. Leave a comment
Over the last few years I have been undertaking to watch and review 100 movies for the first time every 365 days, in an effort to get “more cultured”. I started at the end of 2009 with a strained attempt to remember everything I had watched that year (only reaching 50), then began in earnest in 2010. I published the lists on Facebook and if you’re interested you can skim through them using the following links.
You can check out that half-hearted 2009 effort here, the fragmented 2010 project here and here, and the complete 2011 list here.
This year I’m only up to twelve movies and we are already in March. Best get a move on. My first proper film review for Vagrant Rant goes up tomorrow!
21
Feb
Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: Film, Movies, Review. Leave a comment
Last year I watched 35 movies in the cinema as part of my 100 movie project (more on that later). This year, with summer on its last limp legs, I am up to a grand total of eight. With the Oscars less than a week away, it seems as good a time as any to go through them (I won’t be rating them yet though).
The posters pictured below are the properties of their respective studios.
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Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
Another year of (hopefully) 100 movies kicked off with several loud bangs thanks to Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. The film does not shy away from pyrotechnics and seems to take delight in framing its explosions in the most ludicrous way possible. The traditionally tame period setting has no effect on this; Ritchie knows what he likes from his films and he runs with that. The banter between his leads Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law is what holds the otherwise confusing narrative together. The supporting cast, especially Noomi Rapace, is underused, although Jared Harris’ criminal mastermind Moriarty is well depicted. One brilliant slo-mo heavy escape sequence in particular stands out from what is ultimately an “alright” movie. Continue reading →
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