Posted on May 21, 2010 by Darren
A well-deserved congratulations to all those shortlisted for the LAMMY’s, the annual awards ceremony run by the wonderful guys over at The Large Association of Movie Blogs (who also deserve a congratulations for all the work they do for us little guys). There are some familiar faces on the list and some I barely know, but well done to all and well-deserved. The nominees are listed here.
Filed under: Movies | Tagged: awards, blogging, lamb, lammys, large association of movie bloggers, large association of movie blogs | 8 Comments »
Posted on May 21, 2010 by Darren
Well. I enjoyed that probably far more than I should have. If you ever wondered what Bad Boys would look like set in turn-of-the-last-century London and featuring a better director, then look no further. Although it would seem to be your typical old-fashioned action yarn in the mode of The Mummy or Shanghai Noon, the movie really works best as a time-displaced buddy cop film – or even just as a regular bromance. The movie is light, quick and entertaining. What more could you expect?
There's going to be bloody 'ell to pay...
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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: bad boys, bromance, guy ritchie, jude law, mark strong, Movies, non-review review, rachel mcadams, review, ribert downey jr, robert downey, robert downey jnr., sherlock holmes, watson | 6 Comments »
Posted on May 20, 2010 by Darren
Prince of Persia is coming soon. You can’t miss it, what with all the airtime they’re filling the television channels with, and all the movie specials. The movie is what it is – it’s a cynical attempt to cash in on the retro-chic of the old swords-and-sandals pulpy serial adventures in the same way that Pirates of the Caribbean originally did, while remaining anchored to a property with at least some geek recognition attached. It isn’t by any stretch of my imagination a must-see movie this year (not even making it into my top ten most anticipated films), but it looks it might manage to do what it says on the tin. It might offer a distracting low-brow Middle-Eastern-themed romp with an effective cast and competent direction masking what’s undoubtedly a weak premise. However, the movie has one major fact playing against it: it’s a video game adaptation. And those have something of a dodgy history in Hollywood.
Is Prince of Persia going to get to the next level of video game adaptations?
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: adaptations, art, blockbuster, film, mario brothers, media, medium, Movies, prince of persia, video games | 12 Comments »
Posted on May 20, 2010 by Darren
I am a child of the eighties. It’s a bit of an irony that I am too young to actually recall any of the decade, but still feel more than a pang of nostalgia about it. Evidently I’m not the only one. Perhaps it’s in recognition of the turn of a new decade or the rise of a younger generation, but even a cursory glance at the big budget blockbusters coming our way this summer reveal that the times, they are a-changing. No longer is our fascination with quirky seventies sex comedies or gritty urban cop dramas of that decade: this year, we’re going back to the eighties.
The Expendables is a blast from the past...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: action movies, blockbusters, films, hot tub time machine, macgruber, macgyver, Movies, nostalgia, predator, predators, prince of persia, remakes, retro, sylvester stallone, the a-team, the eighties, the expendables, the past | 7 Comments »
Posted on May 19, 2010 by Darren
I just belatedly saw the Inception trailer last week. My first reaction is just… well, I can’t quite do it justice in printed form, so I guess “wow” will have to do. It’s my single most anticipated movie of the year, but I haven’t really written about it. I haven’t written about it because it’s all been (and will likely continue being) played close to Christopher Nolan’s chest. We only just recently got a plot synopsis, for a movie now two months away. And, you know what? I love it.
I'll be sitting these spoilers out...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: blockbusters, blogging, Christopher Nolan, cinema, Inception, Movies, spoiler, spoilers | 9 Comments »
Posted on May 18, 2010 by Darren
I’ve been thinking (dangerous, I know). Specifically about Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood. I’m going to be honest with you, I was more than a little surprised at the way the film was put together. The film is, to borrow from the parlance of the times, an “origin” story. It’s about Robin, but before he was Robin. There is a single robbery over the entire course of the film, and it doesn’t really amount to much – it’s hardly the stuff of infamy. Instead, Robin is off doing battle with the French in a very manly, water-logged fashion. I tried to judge the film on its own merits (and I think my review is fair), but I’ve found myself thinking over the same question a lot since I saw it: Aren’t a lot of people going to be disappointed that there’s essentially little-to-none of the conventional tropes of a Robin Hood movie present?
Bringing the Hurt...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: audience expectations, audiences, expectations, films, imagery, Movies, ridley scoot, robin hood, russell crowe, tropes | 7 Comments »
Posted on May 17, 2010 by Darren
Jon Favreau has effectively confirmed that “the Mandarin” will be the villain for Iron Man 3. Of course, the fact that this particular opponent has been the character’s arch nemesis means that we would have expected him on celluloid long before this – most superhero movies take great joy in using the archnemesis for the original film, after all (Batman Begins managed to just about do without the Joker, but arguably only because he’d already done Batman). Part of the reason it may have taken so long to transition this particular character to the big screen may have something to do with his origins: essentially the character is a yellow peril villain (as the name implies), who was arguably long out of date when he was introduced, let alone now. Favreau has, diplomatically, acknowledged that the character is going to take great care to get ready for a film role, and it got us thinking: how do we deal with long term and iconic characters who may reflect concepts that we aren’t particularly comfortable with right now?
Yep, this doesn't conjure up any unfortunate implications at all...
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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: fu manchu, iron man, iron man 2, iron man 3, john favreau, jon favreau, mandarin, Movies, racial stereotypes, racist, stereotypes, the mandarin, yellow peril | 10 Comments »
Posted on May 13, 2010 by Darren
Occasionally something small and quirky comes to my attention which I can’t help but post here. In this case, it’s a unique (and clever) way of advertising Iron Man 2. Sure, it would be better if they spelt Terrence correctly, but who am I to judge?
I found this over on Rope of Silicon.
Filed under: Movies | Tagged: films, iron man 2, meme, Movies, terrance howard, terrence howard | 25 Comments »
Posted on May 13, 2010 by Darren
The second of the blockbusters arrives, celebrating the true arrival of summer. Chosen to open Cannes and featuring a return of the powerhouse pairing of maestro Ridley Scott and love-‘im-or-hate-‘im matinee icon Russell Crowe in a historic setting brimming with action potential and historic appeal, it’s safe to say that there’s a lot of pressure on the iconic outlaw, Robin Hood. So does he carry it off as confidently as he carries off that bow-and-arrow?
Boy in da Hood...
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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: blockbuster, cate blanchet, cate blanchett, film, gladiator, historical, Movies, non-review review, review, ridley scott, robin hood, russell crowe | 15 Comments »
Posted on May 12, 2010 by Darren
I remember being assured by somebody that pop culture will eat itself. I’m not sure who and I’m not sure when (maybe this person had a time a machine – because it seems to be happening). I never understood if that was a promise or a threat, and I still don’t. However, if you wanted to get a look at the below of the beast, I imagine it might look a little like Hot Tub Time Machine.
Rubba dub dub, four men in tub...
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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: 1986, back to the future, clark duke, comedy, craig robinson, film, hot tub, hot tub time machine, john cusack, Movie, non-review review, pop culture, review, rob corddry, time travel | Leave a comment »
