August | 2011 | the m0vie blog

Non-Review Review: Kill List

Posted on August 31, 2011 by Darren

A special thanks to the guys over at movies.ie for sneaking us into an advanced preview screening.

Being charitable, Kill List is a complete mess of a film. It has a decent concept, and a solid middle section. However, these are surrounded by an incredibly boring opening half-hour and a monumentally stupid and non-sensical ending. It’s a shame, because one gets the sense that there’s a very clever, very entertaining movie to be found if one can dig deep enough, but it’s very hard to like a film that is so decidedly uneven and feels like an especially random video nasty.

Not exactly light subject matter...

Continue reading →

Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: arts, Ben Wheatley, Contract killing, film, Hit List (film), Hit List (John Keller Mysteries), Hitman, Kill list, Michael Smiley, Movie, non-review review, review, United States | 3 Comments »

Geoff Johns’ Run on Justice Society of America – The Next Age, Thy Kingdom Come (Parts I, II & III) & Black Adam and Isis

Posted on August 31, 2011 by Darren

With the Justice Society of America perhaps the most high-profile title excluded from DC’s upcoming relaunch, I thought I’d bid them farewell by taking a look at writer Geoff Johns’ second run on the title.

The Justice Society of America is one of those titles that DC does so well, one based on legacy. Admittedly Marvel has made some attempts in recent years (The Immortal Iron Fist stands out as a big example, as does Ed Brubaker’s Marvels Project – focusing on the World War II heroes adopted into Marvel’s pantheon), but DC have always handled the nostalgia so well. In fact, the relaunch of the Justice Society of America was prompted by the outstanding success of James Robinson’s original superhero generational saga, Starman. This collection represents the first set of arcs from the third volume – writer Geoff Johns was a veteran from the second volume, which (along with his writing on Flash) brought him to mainstream attention. So he knows the cast of characters and their world inside out.

Pin-ups...

Continue reading →

Filed under: Comics | Tagged: alan scott, Comics, dc comics, dc universe, ed brubaker, flash, geoff johns, green lantern, jay garrick, jsa, justice league, justice society, justice society of america, kingdom come, power girl, Vandal Savage, world war ii | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: The White Buffalo

Posted on August 31, 2011 by Darren

I’m sure there must have been a good movie in there somewhere. The story of Wild Bill Hickok hunting down the wild white buffalo from his nightmares through the Old West could have been a compelling one, even if it’s hard to imagine it ever being a classic. Instead, the movie is hackneyed cheese-fest that seems uncertain what to do with itself. It doesn’t help that Charles Bronson, sleepwalking his way through the production, gives the best performance of the film. If that’s not a bad omen, I don’t know what is.

What a load of bull...

Continue reading →

Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Charles Bronson, doctor who, film, jaws, Manifest Destiny, Moby Dick, Movie, Native American, Native Americans in the United States, non-review review, Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, review, United States, White Buffalo | 2 Comments »

Second Chances for Sequels…

Posted on August 30, 2011 by Darren

What if you have to pee when you’re on fire?

It’s awesome.

I have a confession to make. I am actually kinda looking forward to Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. The trailer looks like it could be either off-the-wall over-the-top brilliant, or mind-numbingly terrifying, but promises to be interesting either way. Still, the taint of the original Ghost Rider, perhaps the weakest comic book adaptation of the past decade (and there have been some weak adaptations), hangs around the title, and I can’t help but wonder if my dislike of the original film should somehow mute my anticipation for the sequel. After all, I’ve seen the concept fail on screen before, so why should I feel even a hint of excitement for a follow-up to a ridiculously crap film? Appropriately enough, with sequels, is it once burnt and twice shy?

Continue reading →

Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Amazing Spider-Man, Brian Taylor, film series, ghost rider, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, marc webb, Mark Neveldine, Movie, Movies, nicolas cage, Peter Fonda, sam raimi, sequels, sony, spider man | 2 Comments »

Short Stories 2011: The Pit

Posted on August 30, 2011 by Darren

Ronan from Swear I’m Not Paul (he’s not) sent on the final instalment in the Relentless Short Films competition, and I’ve enjoyed the other entries so far, so I thought I’d share this last video with you. It’s an interesting look at the world of crowd surfing, and you can see it below.

For more details of the Relentless Short Films competition, click here.

Filed under: Movies | Tagged: art, Crowd surfing, Filmmaking, Jeff Gordon, Moshing, Movies, Relentless Short Stories, Shaw Conference Centre, Short film, The Pit | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Shaft (2000)

Posted on August 30, 2011 by Darren

It feels like something of a backhanded compliment to describe Shaft as John Singleton’s best movie since Boyz n the Hood. Singleton has been one of those directors who has found himself living in the shadow a tremendously influential and successful debut, struggling to find a way to match or surpass it. I think that his take on the most famous blaxploitation hero of all time, while deeply flawed, works so well because it seems intentionally light. It’s not attempting to be big or epic, or even especially socially conscious, it’s just trying to be a decently entertaining – if slightly cheesy – little thriller.

Who's the cat who won't cop out when there's danger all about?

Continue reading →

Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Boyz n the Hood, Busta Rhymes, christian bale, Dave Arnold, David Arnold, film, Jeffrey Wright, John Singleton, Movies, non-review review, review, Richard Roundtree, samuel l. jackson, Shafts | Leave a comment »

Curse of the Starving Class (at the Abbey Theatre)

Posted on August 29, 2011 by Darren

You know, just once I’d like to see a play about a functional American family living within their means and completely satisfied with their circumstances. Still, Sam Shepard’s Curse of the Starving Class is a fairly solid deconstruction of the American Dream, a play that was – when produced – a prescient condemnation of a society living well beyond their means. Indeed, there are more than a few uncomfortable laughs during the play that suggest it’s just as relevant today (especially when certain characters trumpet land as a solid investment which only increases in value). Curse of the Starving Class is a solid production from the Abbey that handles a well-respected play in competent manner, but isn’t necessarily exceptional.

On the fence about it...

Continue reading →

Filed under: Theatre | Tagged: abbey theatre, Aidan Gillen, al pacino, American English, Ciaran O'Brien, Curse of the Starving Class, dublin theatre, Enda Oates, Phelim Drew, Sam Shepard, United States | 4 Comments »

Doctor Who: Let’s Kill Hitler (Review)

Posted on August 27, 2011 by Darren

To celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the longest-running science-fiction show in the world, I’ll be taking weekly looks at some of my own personal favourite stories and arcs, from the old and new series, with a view to encapsulating the sublime, the clever and the fiendishly odd of the BBC’s Doctor Who.

Let’s Kill Hitler originally aired in 2011.

You’ve got a time machine, I’ve got a gun. What the hell. Let’s kill Hitler.

– Mels drops a title

Well, Steven Moffat made it quite clear from the outset that he was going to play with the structure of his second season as executive producer. The show was split and broadcast in two blocks, straddling the summer. It opened with a rather epic two-part adventure that seemed to show us the end of the Doctor’s journey. Let’s Kill Hitler is positioned in a very strange way. It is simultaneously the light and quirky opening episode of the season’s second block, and also the hour devoted to resolving a lot of the lingering questions overshadowing the arc-driven sixth season of the revived Doctor Who.

It is, in short, a mess. It’s a confident and occasionally brilliant mess, but a mess nonetheless.

Crashing the Nazi Party…

Continue reading →

Filed under: Television | Tagged: a good man goes to war, Adolf Hitler, bbc, BBC America, doctor, DoctorWho, Donna Noble, Eleventh Doctor, Good Man Goes to War, Jon Pertwee, Kill Hitler, let's kill hitler, Moffat, review, River Song, steven moffat, Television, time travel | 7 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Please Give

Posted on August 26, 2011 by Darren

Please Give is an interesting little dramedy, with some very well-observed points and a strong cast. It’s smart, it’s biting and it’s quite funny in places, with its wry commentary on some of the more cynical aspects of the human condition. However, I do find myself wondering why the lead characters, wonderfully superficial and weighted down by various forms of guilt, are really worth caring about at.

No mean Peet...

Continue reading →

Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Amanda Peet, arts, Business and Economy, Catherine Keener, film, GenBank, Guilt, Homeless, Movie, non-review review, Organisations, Please Give, ProfNet, Randall Munroe, rebecca hall, review, Shopping, They (2002 film), United States, USA Today | Leave a comment »

The Borgias (Premiere Review)

Posted on August 26, 2011 by Darren

I have to admit, I expected The Borgias to be significantly trashier than it actually was. Instead, the show seems to be something of a more mature and considered big brother of The Tudors, instead of serving as an Italian twin. That’s an observation, and not praise or criticism – there’s something to be said for the energy that cheap blood and sex can instill into even the most flaccid television show, and attempting a slightly more restrained tale of political intrigue is a far more difficult matter. Still, The Borgias has two distinct advantages: Jeremy Irons, and Neil Jordan.