film | the m0vie blog

Non-Review Review: Bruce Almighty

Posted on January 24, 2012 by Darren

I like Bruce Almighty. I’ll concede that I might even like it more than any other of Jim Carrey’s madcap comedies. I think that it’s easily among the best of the comedies he produced after the millennium, doing well from a strong supporting cast and nice central moral. It isn’t deep or profound, and it’s unlikely to offer any more philosophical insight than anybody had going in, but it also manages to avoid being completely vacuous or empty. It’s remarkably satisfying for a light screwball comedy, even if it is a little on-the-nose.

All at sea...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Bruce, Bruce Almighty, Carrey, film, god, jennifer aniston, jim carrey, Morgan Freeman, Movie, non-review review, review, Steve Carell | 2 Comments »

Perfectly Random: Channel Surfing In The Digital Age…

Posted on January 24, 2012 by Darren

NetFlix have arrived in Ireland. Minor complaints about their selection of films aside, it’s time to rejoice as a film fan. Living here in Ireland, it can’t help but feel like we’re a bit behind the times when it comes to cinema. After all, our release schedule tends to lag behind that of our American cousins, with The Muppets only arriving on our shores next month. Still, as excited as I am at the prospect of having an entire universe of film and television at my very command, I can’t help but feel a slight sense of trepidation going forward. I know that this isn’t the end of the digital era of television, but it will undoubtedly affect the way I consume my films. And, while I’ll laud the amount of choice at my fingertips, I reckon I’ll miss the delightful randomness of channel-hopping in the digital age.

Getting on board with new media models...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: art, channel surfing, digital, digital television, film, information age, Ireland, Movies, muppets, netflix, sopranos | 2 Comments »

Whatever Happened to Ron Underwood? One-Shots, Wash-Ups & Never-Has-Beens…

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Darren

I think it’s happened to all of us. We’re flicking through the television channels, and we hit on an old movie we like. In my case, it was the superb 1990 B-movie Tremors. As we’re watching it, and remembering how much we loved it, our mind gets to wondering, “Whatever happened to that guy?” It could be an actor, an actress, a director or a writer. It’s somebody who showed a decent amount of talent (or, in the most frustrating circumstances, a phenomenal amount of talent), but who seemed to fade from view, and who we never heard from again. In this case, it was the director of the film, Ron Underwood. Whatever happened to that guy? Are they still alive? Are they still working? Why haven’t I heard from them since this one really good film I’m watching?

One shot at fame and fortune?

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Adventures of Pluto Nash, arts, Carrie Underwood, charlie sheen, City Slickers, Clockwork Orange, Dog, film, Filmmaking, Internet Movie Database, M. Emmet Walsh, Malcolm McDowell, Mike Fisher, Movie, Ron Underwood, Rooney Mara, Tremors, Underwood | 3 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Carnage

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Darren

Carnage is pretty much an excuse to watch four very skilled actors ripping chunks out of one another. What’s not to like?

This means Warhol!

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: alan, carnage, christoph waltz, film, God of Carnage, jodie foster, john c. reilly, kate winslet, Michael, Movie, Nancy, non-review review, Penelope, review, roman polanski, Yasmina Reza | 12 Comments »

Non-Review Review: J. Edgar

Posted on January 18, 2012 by Darren

I’ll concede that I’m surprised how much I liked J. Edgar. Acknowledging that I’ve been a lot fonder of Clint Eastwood’s more recent output than most, and accepting that this film (like many of his recent films) has considerable flaws, I found it a fascinating examination of twentieth century America, explored through the lens of one character’s life. While it isn’t nearly objective enough (and is far too sensationalist) to be considered a truly effective account of the life of one John Edgar Hoover, it does offer a thoughtful meditation on the relationship between old and young, the corruption of moral responsibility and the lingering doubt that maybe our generation’s elders have somehow disappointed us. It’s in these reflective moments that Eastwood is at his strongest, hitting on themes the director knows especially well. Unfortunately, it is undermined by its handling of the famed FBI director’s personal and sexual life, if only because it completely lacks subtlety and nuance.

There's a lot on the line...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Clint Eastwood, Clyde Tolson, Dustin Lance Black, eastwood, Eleanor Roosevelt, film, Hoover, J Edgar, j edgar hoover, Leonardo diCaprio, Movie, non-review review, review | 2 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Haywire

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Darren

Steven Soderbergh is an interesting film maker. Even when his films don’t really come together as well as one might hope, you can’t help but admire some of his bold ambition. Contagion was probably one of the boldest major releases of last year, and it was always fascinating even when it was just short of brilliance. Haywire falls into a similar trap, with some nice ideas, some great scenes, but nothing that really melds into a particularly compelling film. Indeed, Soderbergh’s spy thriller is messy, undoubted as the director intended – but it doesn’t seem like a highly-energised kinetic mess so much as poorly-plotted and muddled mess. The result is a film that is occasionally invigorating, but also quite infuriating.

On top of it...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Antonio Banderas, casino royale, Channing Tatum, ewan mcgregor, film, Gina Carano, Haywire, ian fleming, jason bourne, martin campbell, Michael Fassbender, Movie, non-review review, Paul Greengrass, review, Soderbergh, Steven Soderbergh | 3 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Blacula

Posted on January 13, 2012 by Darren

You shall pay, black prince. I shall place a curse of suffering on you that will doom you to a living hell. I curse you with my name. You shall be… Blacula!

– racist!Dracula

It’s hard to make sense of Blacula. On one hand, it’s an interesting attempt to update gothic horror stereotypes for a modern audience, translating the horrors of vampirism skilfully from foreign countryside to an urban environment. On the other hand, it’s an uneven mess of a film, with plot holes so large that Blacula doesn’t need to turn into a bat to fly through them. It’s an interesting experiment, and one successful enough to spawn a sequel in Scream Blacula Scream! and to inspire films like Blackenstein, even if some fascinating concepts don’t necessarily add up to a fascinating whole.

A role he can sink his teeth into?

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Blackenstein, Blacula, Bram Stoker, dracula, Dracula: Prince of Darkness, film, Marshall, Movie, non-review review review, review, vampire, William Marshall | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: War Horse

Posted on January 13, 2012 by Darren

War Horse is a fairly solid prestige picture. Spielberg is on fine form, reminding viewers of just how he became an audience favourite. He displays a warm confidence with the material, as if getting comfortable once again with this sort of crowd-pleasing fare. The film has some fairly significant flaws, stemming mostly from a disjointed and disorganised screenplay, but it’s the director’s charm that manages to carry the film through. Ironically, for a film focusing on an equine, it feels like one of the most warmly human films that Spielberg has produced in quite a while.

No horse play!

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Albert, Benedict Cumberbatch, film, horse, horses, Joey, Movies, non-review review, oscar bait, Oscars, review, Saving Private Ryan, spielberg, steven spielberg, tom hiddleston, war horse, World War, World War I | 5 Comments »

In Defense of “Obnoxious” 3D…

Posted on January 12, 2012 by Darren

Discussing the upcoming adaptation of Marvel’s The Avengers, it was strange to hear director Joss Whedon assure fans that the film would not be “obnoxiously 3D.” I am hardly the biggest fan of 3D, for a multitude of reasons I’ll undoubtedly get into in a minute, but I can’t help but feel a little disappointed. After all, since Whedon isn’t filming in 3D, what’s the point in doing it at all if you aren’t at least going to treat it like the gimmick that it is?

Out of their depth?

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: 3-D film, 3d, 3d film, art, avatar, avengers, film, gimmick, Hugo, james cameron, joss whedon, martin scorsese, Movies, steven spielberg, The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn, the avangers (film) | 7 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Shame

Posted on January 10, 2012 by Darren

Shame is a masterpiece, a master class in cinema, and the perfect example of a director and lead actor working synchronously and seamlessly. The movie wouldn’t work without director Steve McQueen willing to push it as far as possible, knowing when to pull back and when to dive in, matched by Michael Fassbender’s fearlessness, throwing himself into a naked performance. (This is where I make a cheap joke about it being “in more ways than one.”) Shame is pretty much the perfect note on which to start 2012.