Non-Review Reviews | the m0vie blog

Non-Review Review: I Am Legend

Posted on July 22, 2009 by Darren

I Am Legend was always going to be a tough film to adapt, so it’s a surprise that it works as well as it does for as long as it does. Anchored in a fantastic lead performance, the film manages to be a very subtle, thoughtful and occasionally insightful action movie for the first two-thirds of its runtime. The ending falls down a bit, but it’s an enjoyable journey getting there.

It's a jungle out there...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: apocalypse, horror, i am legend, Movie, new york, non-review review, review, richard matheson, sci-fi, will smith, zombies | 3 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Doubt

Posted on July 20, 2009 by Darren

Doubt is quite possibly the best movie I’ve seen this year. It’s a fantastic adaptation of a hit play with a cast to die for. It’s also a stunning portrayal of a religious institution at a time of great upheaval, both internally and externally.

Asked about her doubts, Meryl said she had nun...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: amy adams, catholic church, doubt, film, john patrick shanley, meryl streep, Movies, non-review review, philip seymour hoffman, play, review, sisters of charity, viola davis | 5 Comments »

Non-Review Review: The Truman Show

Posted on July 19, 2009 by Darren

One of the very few movies to get even more relevent after it was made, The Truman Show is one of the best movies Hollywood has produced in the past two decades. One part mythical fable about identity and control and another part biting satire on consumerism and reality television, it is one of those rare movies that deserves the description ‘masterpiece’.

For the world is hallow and I have touched the sky...

For the world is hollow and I have touched the sky...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: american idol, ed harris, jim carrey, laura linney, Movies, non-review review, reality television, review, satire, Television, the truman show, truman show | 2 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Wide Open Spaces

Posted on July 19, 2009 by Darren

I don’t know what it is about Irish cinema, but it’s very hard to get excited about. Most of our best talent seems to work overseas, which is why it’s great to get the guys behind Father Ted to come back. But it just… it doesn’t feel right. Wide Open Spaces is a perfectly average film. It isn’t side splittingly funny, but it isn’t dreadfully unfunny either. There isn’t much going on, and there are points when it feels like it’s trying too hard, but it isn’t the worst film of the year. It’s just… not very good, to be honest.

Two actors in search of a good script...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: ardal o'hanlon, comedy, ewen bremmer, father ted, films, Ireland, irish cinema, irish film, irish movies, midlands, Movies, non-review review, review, wide open spaces | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: The Dark Knight

Posted on July 13, 2009 by Darren

Even four years after is original release, The Dark Knight casts a pretty big shadow. Not only is it the best Batman movie ever produced, and easily one of the best stories to feature the character in any medium, it’s also a wonderful piece of cinema on its own terms. Christopher Nolan is an astounding craftsman, and one who constructed his superhero sequel without ever feeling the need to dumb down. The Dark Knight is a wonderfully effective and stunningly constructed piece of popcorn cinema, but it’s also the most profound and engaging (and, importantly, even-handed) meditations on the War of Terror that Hollywood has produced. It’s bold and accessible, but it’s also intelligent and engaging. More than an astoundingly impressive blockbuster, it’s just a superb piece of cinema.

It all goes up in flames…

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: aaron eckhart, batman, batman begins, christian bale, Christopher Nolan, dark knight, film, gary oldman, gotham, harvey dent, heath ledger, joker, Movies, non-review review, review, two face | 4 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Milk

Posted on July 13, 2009 by Darren

Finally got to sit down and watch Milk, despite it being on my DVD shelf for just over a month now. Tonnes of Oscar nominations and two wins, so it’s got a lot of hype to live up to. Was I satisfied with the latest effort from director Gus Van Sant? Was I ever.

Got Milk?

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: best actor, biography, gay rights, gus van sant, harvey milk, history, josh brolin, milk, milk film, Movie, non-review review, Oscars, review, san francisco, sean penn | 4 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Public Enemies

Posted on July 3, 2009 by Darren

I want to love this film. I really do. I enjoyed Miami Vice, so devoted am I to the cult of Mann and his study of the modern man lost in the world of violence and suffering. And Public Enemies has a lot going for it, it does. A fantastic cast, a better-than-fantastic lead, a solid script. On the other hand, the film is, technically speaking, a mess. And not the good kind of mess.

Don't get Christian Bale angry... He won't like you when he's angry...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: billy crudup, christian bale, crime, fbi, film, high definition, history, j edgar hoover, john dillinger, johnny depp, michael mann, Movies, non-review review, public enemies, public enemy number one, review | 11 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Posted on July 1, 2009 by Darren

We were browsing through the channels last night, looking for something to put on to amuse ourselves and quite disheartened to find that there was nothing really good on. We decided that the evening called for some light relief, so we stuck on Forgetting Sarah Marshall – and we were amazed at how well it holds up to repeat viewings.

Sex is a lot like a game of chess...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: film, forgetting sarah marshall, hawaii, jason segel, jonah hill, kristen bell, mila kunis, Movies, non-review review, paul rudd, review, russell brand | 1 Comment »

Non-Review Review: Valkyrie

Posted on June 30, 2009 by Darren

We caught Valkyrie at the weekend. It’s a movie that Dad had been quite looking forward to and I’d heard good things from friends and family. I’m a big fan of Bryan Singer and was more than a bit excited to see him reteam with Christopher McQuarrie. The pair had given us one of the best neo-noir films ever in The Usual Suspects, but how do they deliver on historical epics?

Couldn't be more badass if he tried...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: bryan singer, christopher mcquarrie, film, hitler, kenneth branagh, Movies, non-review review, operation: valkyrie, review, terrence stamp, tom cruise, valkyrie, von stauffenberg | 3 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Mongol

Posted on June 28, 2009 by Darren

I caught this foreign gem playing on Sky Premier today. I’d actually heard quite a bit about it while it was playing at the IFI last year, but most of it was mixed enough that I put off catching it in the cinema. The movie – following the rise of Genghis Khan – is a historical epic of the kind that Hollywood doesn’t really make any more – and I mean that as both a compliment and a criticism. It isn’t as utterly brilliant as those who praise it claim, nor is it as bad as its detractors would have you believe.