Movies
Discover new movies, TV shows, films and series to watch and enjoy with our movie coverage, which includes articles, reviews, round-ups and more.
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Netflix’s Death Note Gets A Bad Rap
Going into Death Note, the 2017 Netflix release, with the thought that your beloved characters from the original will remain the same, you will hate this adaptation. If you go in thinking that Light Yagami is the exact main protagonist you want in this movie, you will hate this adaptation. If you go in thinking somehow that Adam Wingard, director of 2017’s Death Note, could cram the entirety of 37 episodes worth of content into this movie, you will hate this adaptation. 2017’s adventure drama places it’s viewers into the story of Light Turner, a nerdy boy who, unlike Light Yagami, faces an exceptional amount of confrontation in his young adult years of high school. Turner uses these confrontations to…
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Zootopia Money Cycle Theory
In the movie, Zootopia, Nick Wilde is found walking into Jumbeaux’s Cafe, a elephant-primary 1980’s style ice cream parlor. The result of the confrontation between Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde within this parlor was Judy purchasing Nick a “Jumbo-Pop” for what she then thought was his son “who had always dreamed of growing up to be an elephant”. Although this confrontation in and of itself is no less than ridiculous, one detail seems to cause question for the ecosystem of Zootopia as a whole. This detail being, the price of the “Jumbo-Pop”. The price of $15 for an ice cream seems to be very offsetting, but when taking into consideration the sheer size of the treat, $15 seems justifiable. But…
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The House of the Devil (2009) Review
Ti West’s The House of the Devil is a rarity. A back-to-basics throwback to the horror fundamentals of the late 70s and early 80s, set in the period that at no time gives a self aware wink. Made in 2009, the exceptional attention to every facet of the era is so successful that if you were flicking through the cable channels and turned it on you would believe it was in fact a lost gem. The marketing campaign for the film even included a VHS copy for fans. Channeling elements of the popular slasher, babysitter in peril and satanic panic genre the film is an exercise in slow burning suspense that succeeds in achieving a level of anxiety through nothingness…
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Black Swan (2010) Review
Compelling Director Darren Aronofsky leaps onto the stage of obsessive horror once more for Black Swan. Never lacking in power or imagery that resonates, this metamorphic waltz with the personal sacrifices of artistic perfection is orchestrated so that every note unbalances, prying beyond projection. Taking the most recognized of balletic productions Swan Lake and pirouetting off stage to tell the characters stories through fittingly a tale of woe that is allegoric in its harrowing events. As nightmare and reality become indistinguishable, vile metamorphosis eclipses stability at the price of befallen beauty in an eroding art. Nina (Natalie Portman) the pretty ballerina yearns to achieve her dreams of a flawless repertoire. Endlessly practicing to the point of self-inflicted torture she is…
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Attack The Block (2011) Review
In recent years, the alien invasion film has been pushing at the studios imposed limitations on the genre. Defying expectation guerilla productions like Gareth Edward’s Monsters, Neil Blomkamp’s District 9 and Matt Reeves Cloverfield ration the fantasy elements replacing them with something uniquely satisfying in the form of genuine feeling. Continuing the trend, there is much to admire in the low budget British sci-fi /comedy; Attack the Block. Wisely Produced by Edgar Wright, (Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead) and directed with disarming aloofness by writer (Spielberg’s Tintin) and sometimes actor (Hot Fuzz) Joe Cornish, Attack the Block is a festival favourite that succeeds because of its simplicity of design and what would have been sly social conscience. Taking place…
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Secretary – The Dark Hobby of Self-mutilation
In much the same way as Queer As Folk pushes the barrow for the gay and lesbian crowd, Secretary takes leaps and bounds towards bringing legitimacy and empathy to another lifestyle choice. For aficionados of bondage, discipline, sadism and masochism (BDSM to those in the know), Steven Shainberg’s quirky film will no doubt become a visual anthem. As well as telling a love story of a very different kind, Secretary sends the flare up for the uninitiated and illuminates the secret world of those that enjoy a lot of slap with their tickle. Introverted Lee Holloway (Maggie Gyllenhaal) pursues the dark hobby of self-mutilation. To be specific, she finds cathartic release in cutting or burning herself. Such is Lee’s interest…
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K19: The Widowmaker – Based Around A Cold War Submarine Disaster
Plot: K-19: The Widowmaker proves that even the trusty submarine movie can’t prevail against a weak script, poor acting, and loose film-making. Despite its slight insight into an actual Cold War submarine disaster, K-19 is $100m worth of embarrassment for A-list star Harrison Ford and the moguls at Paramount. It’s 1961 and both sides of the Iron Curtain are busy building new and exciting ways to incinerate the planet. For the Soviets, the latest war machine off the production line is a shiny new sub called the K-19. Entrusted with taking this piece of communist whizbangery out and shaking it at the capitalist, imperialist scum is – surprise, surprise – a politically reliable, but possibly incompetent naval officer. The dodgy…
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The Life of David Gale – Dud of the Year, 2003?
Plot: At face value, Alan Parker’s The Life of David Gale possesses all of the ingredients required for a successful thriller. With talented Hollywood darlings Kate Winslet and Kevin Spacey leading the cast and more twists than Chubby Checker, the film could be expected to succeed. Unfortunately, thanks to questionable plot developments, stereotypical characters, and the director’s yearning for a political soapbox, The Life of David Gale is a disappointment. David Gale (Kevin Spacey) is a successful college professor who’s leading the charge to abolish the death penalty in the US, when he’s not touching student’s lives with his ‘cool’ teaching style or dazzling peers with his brilliance in the field of philosophy. David’s an over-achieving all-star, who can also…
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The Predicted Future of 2015 (as told by Back to the Future)
Ahhh yes, Back to the Future. It’s hard to believe that we are already two years past the year Marty went to the future. Remember, the year was 1985 and be blasted on to 2015 in the DeLorean Time Machine. At the time, we thought that the events and inventions that were present in this 2015 were outrageous and impossible. Yet, somehow, the producers weren’t that far off. Perhaps someone actually did pay a visit to 2015 sometime in the past. But, let’s take a look at the exact predictions we saw back in the eighties. Cubs Win World Series Although they were a year off, they hit the nail on the head with the event. Baseball fans all over…
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Mr. Selfridge, Series 3 – The Story of Imaginative American Entrepreneur Harry Gordon Selfridge
I was looking forward to the third of season of ITV’s Mr. Selfridge since the ending of the second series. While the third season did not exactly disappoint me, I do think that there was a bit of room for improvement. When the season begins, World War I has ended. Harry Selfridge’s daughter, Rosalie, is getting married, and a spectacular wedding and reception are being prepared. While Harry is still mourning the loss of his beloved wife, who died recently, his store and financial circumstances are in a very good state, and things are going well. However, Harry’s grief is causing his thinking to not be completely “on the ball”, and he is beginning to make decisions that will ultimately…
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The Great Gatsby – A Romantic Drama Based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 Novel
This 2013 film adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic 20th-century novel, The Great Gatsby, was directed by Baz Luhrmann. It stars Toby Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Joel Edgerton. As in the novel, in the film Nick Carraway (played by Toby Maguire) is the narrator of the story, which is told from his perspective. Nick Carraway is telling the story at the distance of several years after the end of the events he describes, and is putting it all in writing. In the story he tells, Nick is a young and rather naïve man from the Midwest, who has come to New York to gain fortune working in the stock market. As the story is set in the 1920s,…
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The Interview – The Controversial Spy Comedy That Sees The Assassination of Kim Jong-il
This movie was a disappointment. With all the publicity this movie received when released, I was very curious about it. Unfortunately, however, I found that this film has a lot of faults that far outweigh its few (very few) positive points. The movie’s unnecessarily crude opening scene made my hope for the film’s quality quickly sink, and foreshadowed the many poor quality components to come. After the opening scene, we are introduced to a ridiculous, fictional celebrity news show called “Skylark Tonight”. The show and its production constitutes an admittedly rather amusing (and frighteningly accurate) parody of Western celebrity culture. The movie’s main characters are Skylark Tonight’s producer, Aaron Rapaport (played by Seth Rogers) and the show’s host, Dave Skylark…
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Codebreaker – The Story of Alan Turing
This 2011 docudrama is both fascinating and illuminating. It is about Alan Turing, a man who has not received anywhere near the amount of praise, acknowledgement, and fame that he deserves. As a result, you might not know who he was. In fact, you probably don’t. Born in 1912, he was the man who, in 1936, came up with the fundamentals of the computer. In other words, without his work, we would not have computers, or for that matter any other of our well-used and popular digital devices. He also was the person who introduced the whole idea of artificial intelligence, and the idea of the electronic brain. He performed extensive pioneering research in this field. As if all of…
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The One I Love – Will Their Marriage Be Saved?
The One I Love, directed by Charlie McDowell, is about a married couple, Ethan and Sophie, who are trying to rekindle their relationship. Their marriage counselor suggests to them a weekend away together at a house that many of his clients have been to. What is great about this movie is that if you think you know where it’s going already by those first two sentences, you’re probably wrong. The place that Sophie and Ethan stay immediately seems whimsical; an adorable house with a beautiful and spacious garden. Greenery, flowers, a pool, the works. Making it seem more like a fantasy than reality, the soundtrack also adds to this atmosphere. The couple discovers a guest house on the property, just…
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Wolf Hall – A Brilliant British TV Series That Takes Us Back To The 1500s
As I saw each successive episode of Wolf Hall, I was increasingly mesmerised by the realism and beauty of the production. Wolf Hall is based on the award-winning novels Bring Up the Bodies and Wolf Hall, by Hilary Mantel, and is directed by Peter Kosminsky. It stars Mark Rylance, Damien Lewis, and Claire Foy. Wolf Hall depicts the events surrounding Thomas Cromwell’s connections with Cardinal Wolsey and with King Henry VIII of England. Thomas Cromwell’s perspective is the main one from which the story is told. The production begins in the period of Thomas Cromwell’s service to Cardinal Wolsey, who was Henry VIII’s most important and influential official. Cardinal Wolsey’s fall and death happen quite quickly, and we move on…
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The Pyramid – A Newly Found Pyramid Haunts A Team Of Archaeologists
The Pyramid was released in December 2014, and ‘stars’ Ashley Hinshaw, Denis O’Hare, James Buckley and Christa Nicola; it was directed by Gregory Levasseur. The movie was Levasseur’s first venture into directing, having previously been better known for writing the screenplays for movies such as The Hills Have Eyes, Mirrors and Maniac. It was written by Daniel Meersand and Nick Simon, a writing duo who had previously collaborated on Removal (2010) and The 7th Claus. In a found footage format, The Pyramid follows father and daughter archaeologists, Miles and Nora Holden, in their quest to discover a pyramid (ah, now I understand the title…) which has been buried underneath an Egyptian desert for 5000 years. They shouldn’t have bothered as…
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