Category: Movie Review

Director: Michel Gondry

Writer: Charlie Kaufman (Screenplay) Charlie Kaufman, Michel Gondry, Pierre Bismuth (Story)

Starring: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Elijah Wood, Mark Ruffalo, Kirsten Dunst, Tom Wilkinson

 

Plot: When their relationship turns sour, a young couple undergoes a medical procedure to have each other erased from their memories.

Tagline – Replace my memory.

Runtime: 1 Hour 48 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Dark Look at Relationships

 

Story: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind starts as we follow two strangers Joel (Carrey) and Clementine (Winslet) who meet on a train, fall in love, but darkness soon falls over Joel’s life when for some reason Clementine doesn’t remember him and dates someone else.

Clementine has had Joel erased from her memory, Joel is never meant to know this, but when he learns about this, Dr Mierzwiak (Wilkinson) performs the same procedure for Joel and with the technicians Stan (Ruffalo), Patrick (Wood) and Mary (Dunst) help Joel through the destruction of the memories.

 

Thoughts on External Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

 

Characters – Joel is the man that fell in love with Clementine, but sees his life fall to pieces when she goes through a procedure to erase him. Joel broken up about this follows through with his own procedure and now his mind is living through the nightmare of losing his memories and trying to save them. Clementine is the woman Joel falls in love with, after they break up she has him erased and we see how they had their ups and downs through their time together. Dr Mierzwiak is the man behind the technology and his work makes it possible for memories erased. Patrick is one of the technicians working on Joel, he has done an unethical thing when performing the procedure before. Stan is the main man working on Joel, he sees it as an easy job, but this case because more difficult than he could imagine and his reckless behaviour with Mary the receptionist causes more problems than they needed too.

Performances – Jim Carrey is great in his leading role, we get to see a new level because he shows that his serious ability is taking over now, Kate Winslet works here because she gets to be the quirky girlfriend while also feeling like an everyday real woman. We have an excellent supporting cast that all give great performances too.

Story – The story here plays into the idea that sometimes relationships don’t go the way you would plan them too, but in this world you can erase the person you have fallen out of love with. This is a smart idea, because how often have people fallen in and out of love with the heartache of the break up holding people back, this answers this with a solution people could turn too. Only watching it from Joel’s point of view is good and bad, because he is the one that must witness the idea of being left, ignored by the person he once loved.

Romance/Sci-Fi – The romance side of the film shows us just how relationships can play out, they always start amazing but soon they turn into the normality that can put people off where things are going which leads to what happens. The sci-fi elements are smartly used as we see just how the technology used can create everything that happens.

Settings – The settings try to keep us in everyday life and memories, which help Joel find the moments he needs to erase.

Special Effects – The effects are effortless because you barely notice moments as the world falls apart in the memories of Joel.

Scene of the Movie – Escaping the world collapsing.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – The technicians are too reckless for me.

Final Thoughts – This is one of films people are always hyping over, I have struggle to watch this before, but made it through this time and did enjoy for the most part as it looks at how relationships are not always as planned.

 

Overall: Smart romance movie.

Rating

 

 

 

Director: Brandon Slagle

Writer: Brandon Slagle (Screenplay)

Starring: Ryan Kiser, Devanny Pinn, Reid Warner, Chirss Anglin, Serena Lorien, Erin Marie Hogan, Julie Rose

 

Plot: An unflinching chronicle of Charles Manson’s life leading up to the orchestration of the Tate and LaBianca murders..

Tagline – The Dawn of Aquarius

Runtime: 1 Hour 38 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Dull & Boring

 

Story: Manson starts as we see Charles Manson (Kiser) arrested for the conspiracy to commit murder, he now tells his life story where he was in and out of jail, but embraced the hippie lifestyle. As the years role by we see how Manson created his own following with mostly lost young women who got to a level of being willing to die for him and soon, kill for him.

We go on to see the crimes this Manson family went on to commit, starting with small petty crimes before the horrific murders they have become famous for.

 

Thoughts on Manson

 

Characters – Charles Manson is a man from history that many people would want to delete, his action were horrendous, and his followers deluded, that is my personal opinion, so I don’t understand why you would want to make a film to try and make us sympathise with his mindset. This version of the man doesn’t seem to have the true charisma I was expecting to see while the followers do seem to be very interchangeable.

Performances – The performances here don’t seem to do anything for the film, the characters don’t seem to come to life in anyway and when it comes to the women you can barely tell them apart.

Story – the story is most of what we know, it offers nothing new to the story in fact takes away the more complex chapters of the story. if you want to learn the real story it would be better just to watch a documentary version of this film because it gets into how the police had to deal with the outcome of the Mansion family actions.

Crime/Thriller – This is a real crime story, one of the worst crimes recorded too, but it just doesn’t keep you on edge because we know the outcome.

Settings – None of the locations make you feel like you are being drawn into the story and each place could just be random room or house.

Scene of the Movie – Well this is hard, none of it.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – It doesn’t shine any light on the motivation or crimes.

Final Thoughts – This is a very weak real life crime thriller, it is dull throughout, nothing makes us know anything we didn’t know already and by the end we just want to stop the film.

 

Overall: Dull and Pointless look at the real crimes.

Rating

 

 

Director: Joe Swanberg

Writer: Joe Swanberg (Screenplay)

Starring: Olivia Wilde, Jake Johnson, Anna Kendrick, Ron Livingston, Ti West, Jason Sudeikis

 

Plot: Luke and Kate are coworkers at a brewery who spend their nights drinking and flirting heavily. One weekend away together with their significant others proves who really belongs together and who doesn’t.

Tagline – A comedy about knowing when to say when.

Runtime: 1 Hour 30 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Comedy Goes on Too Long

 

Story: Drinking Buddies starts as we meet the co-workers from the brewery Kate (Wilde) and Luke (Johnson) who get along in and out of work, they enjoy a drink together, but both have their own relationship, Luke with teacher Jill (Kendrick) and Kate with Chris (Livingston).

The two couple decide to go away for a weekend together where the relationships will be tested and we get to see just who has feelings for who between the four.

 

Thoughts on Drinking Buddies

 

Characters – Kate is the PR woman at the brewery, she hangs out with the guys drinking after work, she is in the early stages of a relationship but doesn’t have much planned from it. Luke is the co-worker that is closest to Kate, he has been in a long-term relationship but avoiding the marriage conversation. Jill is Luke’s partner, a teacher that doesn’t enjoy drinking as much as Luke and wonders what could have been from her life.

Performances – Olivia Wilde is good in this role, she can play the free spirit that is needed well and work well with Jake Johnson that handles the comic moments well. Anna Kendrick is good as the girlfriend, you believe her in the more serious situation of the film.

Story – The story focuses on two co-workers that enjoy drinking but have their own relationship, we see how when time goes by the relationships become strained and their own feelings become much clearer, there isn’t too much more in this story, it is trying to show us everyday problems that everyday people might have.

Comedy/Romance – The comedy comes off well for the most part, with most part being improv that relies on the actor’s abilities.

Settings – The film keeps us looking in the everyday locations which shows us how lives can change so quickly.

Scene of the Movie – Drinking on the beach

That Moment That Annoyed Me – It does drag in the second half of the film.

Final Thoughts – This is a comedy that uses the idea of everyday life with relationship both romantic and with co-workers, argument can cause problems, but friends will always find a way to make up.

 

Overall: Simple comedy that isn’t the most inspiring.

Rating

 

 

Director: Dom Lenoir

Writer: Ross Owen Williams (Screenplay)

Starring: Matt Hookings, Olwen Catherine Kelly, Hannah Waddingham, Michael McKell, Justin McDonald, Alan Ford, Ian Pirie, Noeleen Comiskey

 

Plot: A young detective is torn apart after his wife ends up in a coma while hunting a serial-killer at the same time.

Tagline – The Edge of Perception

Runtime: 1 Hour 26 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Tense Crime Mystery

 

Story: Winter Ridge starts as we meet detective Ryan Barnes (Hookings) about to celebrate his anniversary before an accident leaves his wife in a coma. This happens when the first sudden heart attack in the area starts.

With Sara still in her coma, the drink driver Mike Evans (Pirie) free on the streets the number of heart attacks in the area has been increasing, leading to Ryan needing to solve what seems to be a serial killer and need to learn the motives.

 

Thoughts on Winter Ridge

 

Characters – Ryan Barnes is the best detective on the force in area, he knows how to deal with the locals to be fair and strict depending on their offences. His good nature only ends up with his wife in a coma and him holding a grudge against anyone committing the same crime, this clouds his judgment when they learn about a serial killer in the area. He is grief guilt ridden man that knows and believes he is at fault for his wife’s coma. Jessica is the nurse that is on Ryan’s side when it comes to caring for his wife, she helps with information and is the ear to listen to about the pain he is feeling. Joanne runs the care home for the elderly while also being the therapist supporting Ryan through his troubles. John Faulkner is the police chief that keeps Ryan around because he knows he is the best man for the job deflecting any problems in the media circus.

Performances – Matt Hookings in the leading role is the star of the show, he is in nearly scene and we understand his grief and determination being shown. Olwen Catherine Kelly is good with her limit role in the film, with the supporting cast all giving us good performances bouncing off Hookings’ performance.

Story – The story here follows a detective that is dealing with his own personal guilt that must try to get to the bottom of a serial killer that is targeting the locals in the area. This is a mystery story to follow and as we only see how the lead detective learns different information unfolding. When it comes to this type of story we do need to be kept guessing to make everything look and feel more interesting as we try to solve the mystery ourselves (well I do). Once we learn who is behind the crimes we do get motives they believe in which is again always important and even gives us a chance to sympathise with their decision. The subplot where we see how Ryan must learn to forgive a crime against him which is unforgivable is what is great to watch, we see him keep his calm nature for the people who can’t help their crimes and turns on the ones that know what they are doing wrong. If you do like a good mystery to discover this is going to be one for you to enjoy.

Thriller – The film does keep us guessing to who is behind the crime, we get plenty of suspects which could have their own motives which helps us enjoy this more than only learning having everything pointed at one.

Settings – The film is set in a small English countryside town, which gives us the sense of community and gives us the chance to get beautiful shots of the landscapes.

Scene of the Movie – Motivation speech.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – The random journalist that turns up for only one scene with this many bodies turning up.

Final Thoughts – This is a good mystery thriller that keeps you guessing from start to finish, uses the settings to give us beautiful shots and Matt Hookings shines in the leading role.

 

Overall: Must watch for mystery fans.

Rating

 

 

Director: Phil Traill

Writer: Tom Williams (Screenplay)

Starring: Felicity Jones, Ed Westwick, Bill Nighy, Brooke Shields, Bill Bailey, Tasmin Egerton, Sophia Bush

 

Plot: Former skateboard champion Kim wants to make more money after her mother’s tragic death. She joins the elite posh servicing company, which sends her off to Austria.

Tagline – How to marry a billionaire.

Runtime: 1 Hour 37 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Sweet, Delightful and Enjoyable

 

Story: Chalet Girl starts as we meet Kim (Jones) a skateboarding icon that has vanished from the circuit following the death of her mother, working in a burger restaurant caring for father Bill (Bailey). Needing to make more money Kim takes a chance to work as a chalet girl for an elite posh household in Austria, giving on the basic training from fellow girl Georgie (Egerton), she gets to start a new direction.

The family includes father Richard (Nighy) that is willing to give anyone a chance, his son Jonny (Westwick) who is happy to accept Kim, his girlfriend Chloe (Bush) and mother Caroline (Shields) are quick to judge. Over her time in the slopes Kim finds that she is a natural snowboarder and learns to love this new life, but struggles to shake her own demons.

 

Thoughts on Chalet Girl

 

Characters – Kim is a common English girl whose talents are great for home life and is now hiding from his potential from the world after the death of her mother. She has always been safe even though her skateboarding career doesn’t seem so safe, she takes a job she clear would never fit in around the clients, she soon learns that she is a natural snowboarder, but will need to overcome her past nightmares to continue her life. Jonny is one of the household that visit, he catches Kim’s attention, but has a girlfriend, he is open to giving Kim a chance in this world even if she isn’t from the posh background like the normal girls they get. Richard is the owner of the house, he welcomes any help as long as they can do the job without any problems.

Performances – Felicity Jones broke onto the scene with this role, she is fantastic as the common girl, never letting her performance look glamorous and making it easy to connect to her real-life issues. Ed Westwick is good in his role looking the part of the rich attractive guy. Bill Nighy and the rest of the supporting cast are all great through the film with Bill Bailey does get the most laughs.

Story – The story follows a young girl about to take on adulthood with her first long-term trip away from home, she must learn how the high life live, while battling her own past which haunts her to this day and become the star in the sport she never knew she had the talent for. This is one of the strongest points in this movie, the other side of the film is watching how she falls in love with a guy from this other world, which I feel takes away from just how important her journey needs to be. For a popcorn rom com this is a by the book story that can be enjoyed and doesn’t seem to go in any direction you wouldn’t imagine it going.

Comedy/Romance – For a comedy this gets plenty of laughs from the whole cast, while romance side of the film is by the book, but does take away from the bigger story.

Settings – The film takes Kim from start in her normal common life, to live a life she had never imagined in Austria.

Scene of the Movie – Snowboard run.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – The commentator for the snowboarding event.

Final Thoughts – This is an enjoyable rom com that does have a deeper meaning for our leading lady Kim, this will leave you with a smile on your face and can be enjoyed by all.

 

Overall: Leaves you will a smile on your face.

Rating

 

 

Director: Jeannot Szwarc

Writer: Carl Gottlieb, Howard Sackler (Screenplay)

Starring: Roy Scheider, Lorraine Gary, Murray Hamilton, Joseph Mascolo, Jeffrey Kramer

 

Plot: Police chief Brody must protect the citizens of Amity after a second monstrous shark begins terrorizing the waters.

Tagline – Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water.

Runtime: 1 Hour 56 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Lacks the Tension

 

Story: Jaws 2 starts with Brody (Scheider) having to go back to the basic problems in the town again, noise complaints being the hardest part of his day, or the wife Ellen (Gary) who is happy their eldest son still doesn’t have a job.

When a string of unusual shark attack along the coastline start happening again, Brody must once again go against the orders of Mayor Vaughn (Hamilton) to stop people getting killed, but this becomes more difficult when his own son goes against his request and takes to the ocean in his boat.

 

Thoughts on Jaws 2

 

Characters – Brody is now open to going out to sea in search for any sharks, when things start to look clear again, he finds himself questioning attacks in the area, which leads him getting into trouble and losing his job, this time he must fight the shark alone, but to save teenagers, which include his own children stranded in the ocean. Ellen is the wife of Brody, she works for the town which only adds to the confliction between the two when Brody starts panicking too early. Mayor Vaughn keeps his same stance through everything and that is about his character. We have a lot of annoying teenagers breaking the rules and boating.

Performances – Roy Scheider is the highlight of the performances here, he carries every scene he is in and you generally switch off when he isn’t on camera. The rest of the performances are average while most of the teenager characters and performances just annoy you.

Story – The story does feel like more of the same, all is calm now, but Brody won’t rest and when the shark returns he must rescue stranded teenagers which include his own children. This story does seem to have increased peril but does have decreased tension level because you don’t find yourself caring about the teenagers in peril and lose the colourful characters we had in the first film.

Adventure/Horror – The adventure does side of things doesn’t connect enough, while the horror could be more intense.

Settings – We are out at sea for longer point of the film, but it doesn’t help the film because it is just calm, attack, panic, calm, attack, panic calm on repeat.

Special Effects – The effects are good for the time, but seeing the shark more takes away from the tension of the first film.

Scene of the Movie – Brody versus the shark

That Moment That Annoyed Me – The kids are annoying and stupid and I hate them.

Final Thoughts – This is a weaker sequel to much loved first film, it is carried by Roy Scheider while the rest of the cast struggle, but the final battle with the shark is a lot of fun.

 

Overall: Weaker sequel, but maybe not the worst.

Rating

 

 

Director: Michael Mailer

Writer: Diane Fisher, John Buffalo Mailer (Screenplay)

Starring: Demi Moore, Alec Baldwin, Dylan McDermott, Viva Bianca, Dorothy Lyman, Renee Willett

 

Plot: A novelist blinded in a car crash which killed his wife rediscovers his passion for both life and writing when he embarks on an affair with the neglected wife of an indicted businessman.

Tagline – Love… Unexpected.

Runtime: 1 Hour 38 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Simple Romantic Drama

 

Story: Blind starts as wife Suzanne (Moore) of businessman Mark (McDermott) finds her life shattered after his dealings, which leave her with community service, her time is work novelist and teacher Bill Oakland (Baldwin), blind after an accident that killed his wife.

As the two spend more time together they learn that they have a connection they could never imagine, but how will Mark take this from behind bars?

 

Thoughts on Blind

 

Characters – Suzanne is a happily married woman in the higher society of life in New York, her life is changed when Mark is placed in jail for his business activities, this means Suzanne must do community service for her part where she meets a man that changes her view on her life. Bill Oakland is a novelist who lost his wife and sight in an accident, he still teaches, but at times short-tempered, he lost he desire to write and now his life is open to new things and return to his writing. Mark is the husband of Suzanne, a businessman that has ben jailed for his activities, always staying one step of a situation, dirty as they come.

Performances – Demi Moore is good in her role, she fits the role well for the age and the draw. Alec Baldwin is also good in his role, he plays the blind character without looking out of place. Dylan McDermott plays the creep well and this is no different.

Story – The story here shows to unlikely people coming together, finding themselves connecting in a way that can’t be good for anything long term with one being married. The story doesn’t do enough to address the tragic side of Bill’s life, we get a glimpse, but this should be front and centre, until way too lat in the film. It is also hard to see this romance happening and when we get into a supporting character Gavin we need something more about this character’s story too.

Romance – The romance in this film plays us along the lines of it never being too late to meet someone that will change your life forever,

Settings – The setting for the movie is New York, which shows us how difficult and how modernised to make it a place that the blind could get around with ease compared to other locations.

Scene of the Movie – Not over stating the idea he is blind.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – He is just a short story, I am a novel, barf

Final Thoughts – This is a standard romantic movie, it checks the boxes but never reaches any level of memorability.

 

Overall: Ticks the boxes and keeps between the lines.

Rating

 

 

Director: Steven Spielberg

Writer: Peter Benchley, Carl Gottlieb (Screenplay) Peter Benchley (Novel)

Starring: Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss, Lorraine Gary, Murray Hamilton

 

Plot: A local sheriff, a marine biologist and an old seafarer team up to hunt down a great white shark wrecking havoc in a beach resort.

Tagline – See it before you go swimming.

Runtime: 2 Hours 4 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Suspenseful Classic

 

Story: Jaws starts as when a college student goes missing, Chief Brody (Scheider) believes it to be a shark attack and wants to close the beaches, but the Mayor (Hamilton) refuses to allow it, when the shark takes another victim, the town becomes a panic after a reward is put forward.

Quint (Shaw) offers to rid the town of the shark, but for a price, but random hunters from around America turn up to try and capture the shark. Marr Hooper (Dreyfuss) arrives in town to help with the higher level of knowledge even understand the species of shark behind it.

With July 4^th around the corner Chief Brody must battle the mayor on whether to keep the beaches open until the latest appearance leaves Brody, Quint and Matt needing to hunt down the great white.

 

Thoughts on Jaws

 

Characters – Chief Brody is the police on the island, he is afraid of the water, he does want to do the right thing and close the beaches, but doesn’t get the support from the mayor, he must work on his fears to hunt down the shark. Quint is an expert hunter, he offers to kill the shark for a higher target, an outsider in society, a drunk, blunt with anyone he doesn’t like, which is most people. Matt Hooper is the expert that comes down to identify which shark species could be feeding off the shores, he knows his sharks and the danger, habits they possess.

Performances – Roy Scheider is great in the leading role because he needs to be the fear between the three men, while also being the authority. Robert Shaw as the outsider works well, he makes us believe he is an outsider with each action. Richard Dreyfuss is great too which does complete the chemistry the three lead men need for the second half of the film.

Story – The story follows a tourist island which finds itself being targeted by a shark, wanting to treat it as the new feeding ground. We follow the three different characters, from different fields that must work together to rid the waters of the shark before the tourist industry is ruined for the residents. This is a simple story to follow which is good because that is what it needs to be, it bottles down to needing to deal with a problem the quickest way possible.

Adventure – The adventure side of the film shows the three needing to work together to take on the shark, roaming the waters.

Settings – The film keeps the settings simple, we have the land island surrounded by water which because the hunting ground of the shark, this could be any water related resort.

Special Effects – This is where Spielberg became an icon, he knows how to handle the need for the use of effects, which is used only when required.

Scene of the Movie – Bigger boat.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – Mayor power.

Final Thoughts – This is always going to go own as one of thee greatest movies of all time, still feeling timeless which is what we like in our movies, the simple story works and the use of music adds to the tension throughout the film.

 

Overall: Wonderful thriller.

Rating