kenneth branagh | the m0vie blog

Where Have All the Good Movies Come From?

Posted on November 1, 2010 by Darren

I know I wasn’t alone when I claimed that this summer had been (with a few big exceptions) a massive disappointment for movie fans. In fairness, with a few bright spots, 2009 wasn’t exactly an above-average year either. However, myself and the better half have been going to the cinema fairly consistently over the past number of weeks and I have to admit that I’ve been more consistently impressed by films like The Social Network, The Kids Are Alright, Easy A and The Town than I have by any run of films in at least the last year. Is it just me, or are things finally looking up?

A veritable feast of good cinema...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: 2008, 2008 in film, 2010, 2010 in film, danny boyle, Darren Aronofsky, Easy A, film, forgetting sarah marshall, good movies, Hurt Locker, inglourious basterds, jeff bridges, kenneth branagh, Movies, november, october, oscar season 127 hours, quentin tarantino, the black swan, The Kids Are Alright, the social network, the town, tron: legacy, true grit | 7 Comments »

A Sight for Thor Eyes: Thoughts on the Set Design of Thor…

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Darren

The first on-set photographs of Kenneth Branagh’s Thor have arrived on-line. And a lot of people are, understandably, turned off. I’ll be honest, I can see where they’re coming from: it’s camp and kitsch in a way that would allow it to serve as a backdrop for an Abba music video – and that ain’t the demographic we’re going for here. Anthony Hopkins looks like he has fashioned his eyepatch out of Ferraro Roche wrappers. However I, ever the contrarian in small and insignificant ways, love it. Let’s call it the Donner factor. Because that’s much more sophisticated than “the Superman factor”.

I think that style is quite super...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: film, keneth branagh, kenneth branagh, marvel comics, Movies, odin, richard donner, set design, stylistic, superman, thor | 8 Comments »

Thor And Internal Consistency…

Posted on October 21, 2009 by Darren

I am growing more and more excited about Thor as every little snippet of rumour leaks out about casting. Which is odd, because Thor is one of the movies coming out on the road to The Avengers which I really don’t care that much about. It’s a superhero movie about a guy with a really big hammer – I don’t want to see that version of Thor. On the other hand, my interest was piqued from the moment that Kenneth Branagh was announced as director. Kenneth Branagh’s Thor I am interested in seeing. Particularly if it stars Robert deNiro and Jude Law. Still, my inner nerd remains skeptical about positioning a film based on myths and magic so firmly as a cornerstone of the on-screen Marvel universe.

What's the point of being the God of Thunder if you can't use it to dramatic effect every now and again?

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Filed under: Comics, Movies | Tagged: brian blessed, chris hemsworth, comic books, Comics, consistency, films, internal consistency, iron man, jude law, kenneth branagh, marvel, odin, robert deniro, the incredible hulk, thor, ultimate thor | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: The Boat That Rocked

Posted on September 29, 2009 by Darren

This is a movie that ends with a rendition of the classic Bowie pop number Let’s Dance, because it couldn’t fit it anywhere in its linear narrative amid all the time-specific pop and rock tunes. The movie has quite a bit in common with that most financially successful of songs from the Thin White Duke. It’s light, it’s breezy and it’s catchy, with just a hint of some extra darkness that is rarely found among its light and fluff compatriots. It’s also the work of an intensely talented artist (and, indeed, artists) who probably should be doing more innovative and important work, but we almost can’t blame them because it’s so much fun. Almost.

Quite a board walk...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: bill nighy, british cinema, comedy, emma thompson, kenneth branagh, Movie, music, nick frost, non-review review, philip seymour hoffman, pirate radio, radio, review, rhys ifans, richard curtis, rock, the boat that rocked | Leave a comment »

The Incredible Avengers…

Posted on July 27, 2009 by Darren

The Avengers has gone form being the movie project I was most skeptical about to one of my most anticipated movies of the comic years. Indeed, the summer of 2011 is looking to be one for the books with a whole rake of massive cult and comic book films coming out – Thor, Captain America, Green Lantern and, should Gary Oldman be believed, Batman 3. However, the culmination of Marvel’s planning within the cinematic world will be the release of The Avengers in 2012. I’ve never been much of a Marvel fan, but I will concede that they have pulled off an amazing movie-making feat. They have created a fully-integrated film universe from a variety of disparate sources building to to a clear target.

Avengers Assemble...

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Filed under: Comics, Movies | Tagged: ant-man, avenegrs, captain america, co-exist, comic books, crossover, crossovers, fantastic four, fictional universes, franchises, hugh jackman, hulk, iron man, iron man 2, john munch, kenneth branagh, marvel, Movies, samuel l. jackson, shared continuity, shared storyline, shared universe, Television, the icnredible hulk, thor, tommy westphall, tony stark, universes, wolverine, x-men | 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?