Doctor Strange!

Excited about this review!

First things first, we watched it because we are Marvel lovers and Benedict Cumberbatch lovers but we weren't expecting him to play a character that in some way we hadn't seen before because Benedict Cumberbatch is a bit like Robert Downey Jr, he only (so far) plays characters that have a huge ego, are evil or are greedy. Doctor Strange definitely falls into the first category but also a little into the third category as well.

What Doctor Strange has is an awesome cape, Chiwetel Eijofor to kick him in the face every now and then, Tilda Swinton to remind him that no matter how intelligent  he is there is always someone who can kick his ass and Rachel McAdams to remind him that every man needs a partner by their side to help them out. It's a team effort- not about one man and his quest for glory, one team and their quest to turn the arrogant prick into something useful in order to fulfil their quest.

Lots of imagination, lots of reference to martial arts, fire bending and few other fantasy things that we have seen from anime or other types of films and references to the avengers multiple times. I have never read the Doctor Strange comics and I didn't know anything about Doctor Strange but Marvel do have a way of combining their universe and making films that now link with all their other films. Yes, they haven't quite linked up the X-Men and the Avengers yet but they will get there and with the customary scene at the end linking together Thor and Doctor Strange they have continued their universe very successfully.

Benedict Cumberbatch is perfect for the part of Doctor Strange, his swagger and arrogance and yet somewhere underneath it all we aren't surprised because he comes across as an intelligent man. Tilda Swinton is fantastic and even more so because she constantly holds her own against many men and women. The death was inevitable but she died in honour and she was not at all overpowered or pathetic at any point. For ages I thought that she was Cate Blanchett because of her voice but then when I saw the credits I realised that it was Tilda Swinton.

Chiwetel was just fantastic. He wasn't the enemy but he does have an issue with being in sequels, he is always in films where he either dies or walks out so as to avoid being in another film. His character was different and the one who will probably be missed the most in the next film. I am looking forward to another film being made and seeing how Doctor Strange is going to become as powerful as Tilda Swinton was.

Just watch the film! Watch the adverts, get excited- the visuals are fantastic and the cape is something special so just go with it and watch it many times over and over until it stops showing at the cinema near you!

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back

Anticipated and eagerly awaited by myself and a few others since watching the first film. I haven't read the books but I know someone who has and she loved the first film.

Tom Cruise is almost perfect in the role- he's not 6'4 but apart from that he is fantastic and the Jack Reacher that can be imagined from the books. Now I am told that this film is like the twentieth book in the series and not book two which is a little sad but I guess that as proven by James Bond you can't actually really afford to make twenty films of books that have been written in a series successfully as Tom Cruise will not continue being in his 40's forever.

No Jai Courtney this time and no real relevance to the first film except that if you have watched it then you will be familiar with his style of fighting and you will know exactly what to expect from Cruise and from the film. Cobie Smulders is the leading woman in this case and she is slightly better than Rosamund Pike in terms of her character but then again they are completely different in every way. Her character was strong enough but at times I felt like she was being beaten a little too easily for a Major in the army. I know that she is a woman but she could be stronger if they had wanted her to be. There will always be characters like Reacher who are supposed to be stronger than everyone else but when she is just fighting henchmen of the main villain then she should have a license to be stronger but that isn't really a criticism of Cobie Smulders, that is a criticism of the director and crew who decided to make the character weaker than she should be.

What you can enjoy about Jack Reacher is the knowledge that no matter how often the enemy thinks that they have him, they don't. It's that simple and it makes it nice and easy to watch the film, you're never worried and even if you are supposed to think that he is dead part of you just doubts it, not hopes, knows that there is no chance of that. James Bond never died, not matter how many times they tried to kill him he never actually died and that is going to be the same thing with Reacher- one day, in a few novels time when the author has decided to call it a day he will either pick a fight that he can't win because he is physically too old or he will die of old age.

They have tried to spice it up and the woman playing 'Samantha' just grew on you more and more. Danika Yarosh is a name to look out for- she is one for the future if she continues to make good choices about her career because she has got talent in abundance.

This film is worth watching and worth acquiring as soon as you can because it is one that you will watch over and over again when the time is right. It's the right kind of action to fit most moods.

Warcraft

This is the film that was released earlier this year and has just been released on DVD in the UK.
If you are looking for a review or a post about world of warcraft films or other films with parts of this name in the title then please go elsewhere.

Dominic Cooper is the only name that I recognised from this starting lineup and often that doesn't matter but in this case, for this film it probably says a lot about the film. Normally the online scores from other websites or ratings from reviewers can serve as a good indication for a film, yes that doesn't necessarily mean that you will dislike a film that they disliked but it can serve as a good indicator. I knew from the opening sequence of this film with CGI that looked a little half-assed and runescape esq that it had the potential to be better than it was going to be. Just to throw this out now, I am not a Warcraft fan- never really stumbled across it or took the time to get in to it but I am not a hater. I can follow the plot for this film and work with it.

So speaking of the plot I found myself asking the ever dreaded question 'why?' throughout this film. A fight between Orcs and other races has been seen in movies before so what is it that is going to make you feel particularly compelled to go and see this film more than just for example sitting down and watching The Lord of The Rings (which I love)?  I guess that in all films I look for something that is original and whilst I am aware that it is practically impossible to have a completely original idea and even harder to make an original film if there is nothing in your film that is different and new then why are you making it? Avatar was Pochahontas in blue with ground-breaking new technology, There was nothing original about the plot but the way that they filmed it was completely new. Is there anything new about Warcraft? No.

When I was watching it at times I felt that frustration that I often get from watching Once Upon A Time. The plot shouldn't have been similar but it was and that's bad because there is already more than enough Once Upon A Time and we DON'T need anymore in this world.

Apart from all those criticisms I have a fantastic ability to enjoy most films and I actually did enjoy watching this film, I just didn't really see anything that was spectacular in it and by this point in the year and with so few films left I really want things that are going to make me either rave on about them in a good way or in a bad way and this film did neither.

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation.

Finally reached the last one. Good to know that I wont have to waste anymore time watching these films and obviously Tom Cruise knows it because the start of the film is about him being beaten by his repetitive system.

The first thing that I have to write is that his mission Vinyl is destructing in five seconds and yet he has time to watch his secretary be shot in the head whilst trying to punch his way out of the glass box he is in? That was the longest five seconds I have ever seen! Within the first ten minutes the criticisms are already falling thick and fast- doesn't bear well for the rest of the film. The impossible stunts and the clearly overpowering enemies that Tom Cruise is up against says a lot about the film. He is out of his league and he knows it yet they make impossible stunts to give him a chance- he's past playing this character- younger men would beat the hell out of him, he's never been the 'Jack Reacher' character that people try to make him out to be, he's not got the physicality for it and it is time for him to stop.

I am trying to look past all the criticisms that could be made of this film and focus on the good bits like the Vienna Opera- the scenery, the music, the dress code- it was all lovely. Now we are in 2015 (or 2016) and we can show great scenery, filmed in quality with something that makes it fantastic. If the rest of the film were to be absolute crap the film would still just about pull through for the opera scene. Watching the realistic scene of attempting to assassinate the chancellor of Austria is worth it because it is actually realistic.

If you can't enjoy that then you can enjoy Simon Pegg telling Tom Cruise where to get off. He's more than the techy, he's a field agent with serious cyber skills who is more than capable of beating up most enemies. It would be good to bet against Tom Cruise in a fight but I am still not sure that Simon Pegg could it but it would be nice if they were to fight in this film. You can also enjoy Pegg creating impossible tasks for Cruise to perform and then the look of bewilderment on Cruise's face when he realises that holding his breath for three minutes whilst physically exerting himself to the highest extremes was impossible.  Finally, five films on and he has realised that the things that they do in these films are so impossible that no one believes that his character can actually do that stuff.

Ethan Hunt is a character like James Bond- one of the worst spies around because everyone, in any agency around the world knows who they are and what they look like. No stupid masks this time which have become a norm for these films but it wouldn't matter because everyone is as used to them as they are to actually seeing Tom Cruise's face. He can't pull off going undercover because he is too well known and a mask is expected so people prepare for that. This wouldn't be a M.I film if they didn't at least try to do the stupid things so we get to enjoy watching Cruise fail in his attempt, or as always, unrealistically not fail in his attempt and pull off the physically impossible. We've stuck with these films this far so we might as well keep going- he was so close and we were so close to getting really bored.

When he fails there is always a somewhat relatively attractive woman to help him out and save him from certain death. A waste of time but it wouldn't be a M.I film if the beautiful woman didn't get a chance to take off her clothes and make love to him- like in all James Bond films. The double crosser that she is, is the reason as to why Jeremy Renner and a few others are still in the film and being paid. Nothing will be quite as good as M.I 1 but they had to try. If you are a fan you will watch all of these films but if you are not then don't bother yourself with the hassle- like with Die Hard you have seen it all before.

Almost Famous

Great soundtrack, all about the guys with the guitar and the blues licks in a similar style to ACDC.

What is it about a film clearly made in the eighties or nineties that can make you feel so good whilst acknowledging that it is a very dated film? The way that the scene changes are done tell you that it was filmed in the eighties or nineties because the typing is similar to Ten Things I Hate About You. Everything about it looks like a film from the nineties, yet the music suggests more of the eighties so currently I am unsure of the time period and will have to check this later.

Kate Hudson (Glee, Kung Fu Panda 3), Frances McDormand (Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day), Zoey Deschanel (Yes Man, Elf, New Girl) and Billy Crudup lead the line. I don't recognise any of the male names in this film but most of the women have gone on to make a name for themselves. This film was the starting point for most of these names. Everyone has to start somewhere and for a lot of the cast this was their starting point, they gained fame from this film and went on to make a career for themselves.

Kate Hudson, where to start? The woman who was engaged to Matt Bellamy (Muse), has a son with Bellamy and has often made the mistake of staring in a few rubbish romcoms because she is very attractive. In this film she looks like a young Drew Barrymore. This film made it on to the list because of the poster that kept appearing on the movie quiz and I kept getting it wrong because I was mistaking her for Drew Barrymore. She doesn't really regret anything in her career and that is a good way to go but we will spend no further time talking about things in her life which aren't related to this film. Hudson won a golden globe for this film and she is fantastic in it- change the name to I am famous because she has become so since making this film.

Great feel to the film, great scenes and definitely worth checking it out.

Riddick

Two great films before this one was made a few years between The Chronicles of Riddick (2004) and Riddick (2013). Here is where we admit that we constantly get confused with the order of these films and watch The Chronicles of Riddick and Pitch Black in the wrong order. Pitch Black came first and then four years later The Chronicles of Riddick was released.

With Vin Diesel reprising his role as Richard B Riddick for a second time and Karl Urban featuring in a reprise of his role everything is set up for a brilliant action packed film. You never doubt Karl Urban for a second and you never doubt Vin Diesel. This is one fight that you would not like to place a bet on and just because Diesel won the last time around it seems highly unlikely and unbelievable that Urban would constantly lose. So if you are reading this thinking that this film is just a nine year newer version of the film before because I have just taken the time to talk about Urban and Diesel fighting then think again. Urban's role is small, the real guy to watch out for is Matt Nable (Arrow- Ra's Al Ghul). Equally as strong and well built as Karl Urban with the same superiority as Urban but something not quite as calm and collected in his manner.

Matt Nable is a name to watch out for in the future. Sooner rather than later he will be the face of most action films. With Liam Neeson coming towards the end of his 'Taken' days and Keanu Reeves over rated in every sense, Matt Nable is the next guy to take it on because unlike Reeves and Affleck he can show emotion and unlike Willis, he can actually act properly. If this performance is anything to go by (and of course, his performance in Arrow) then he has a bright future ahead of him and hopefully we will be seeing more of him on the blog over the next few years.

Let's face it, if you are going to watch this film it is because you are a fan of Riddick. This is the third in a series so it's not one to start with but the only way that you are going to watch this film is from enjoying the previous two. He's a man of his word our Mr. Riddick and you can take his word that if you liked the previous films then you will like this. You know what to expect and you know what you are getting from the film but this film is more like Pitch Black than it is The Chronicles of Riddick. Most of it is set in the desert and whilst I appreciate having the token women in the team to keep all parties happy the scenery and wow factor that was given from the planet that he was on in the previous film isn't actually here in this film. This film feels something like Firefly crossed with Resident Evil. Moments of class and some great technology and imagination, this film is like what would happen to Star Wars if anyone directly involved with that film had a shred of imagination. Grab some sweets and a blanket and sit down with your coffee knowing what you are about to watch. No surprises, just pure action in a sci-fi way.

The Reader

Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes are the names that the film is sold on. Based on a book by the same name the film is about an older woman who was a member of the Nazi party and responsible for locking a lot of women away in  a church and burning them. It is an emotional film and mostly because the performance from Winslet almost manages to make you supportive of her position.

The biggest issue for me with this film is that it is not okay for any older adult to be having sex with anyone under the age of eighteen. I don't care if they want it. it's not okay. If it wasn't for the fact that she seduces a teenage boy then it would be a really good film but that entire plot line revolving mostly around that really put me off the film.

Having said that, for all the negative things in her character, the moment when she almost convinced me to side with her and when she almost convinced the entire room that it wasn't her fault and that she had no choice was unbelievable. One phrase and she had just won that round without trying, without wanting to clear her name or denying anything. It was an indescribable moment when she did that, everyone had to stop what they were doing and were left speechless- something rare to find in films. She took the award for it and she thoroughly deserved it. Sometimes I feel like she makes a bad choice with a film but actually she made a perfect choice with this film because even though it was an interesting film and I didn't particularly like it she took the character to another level and made it in a league of its own.

 Ralph Fiennes just picks up the pieces and draws the film along nicely. He couldn't save her in the end and by the time we get to see him in real action most of the film is over because the film was mostly done by David Kross (War Horse). Kross won a lot of attention from this film and he was spectacular in his role as young Michael Berg. Seeing him turn into Ralph Fiennes was lovely, sometimes you can just see these things happening and sometimes you can't but this was the former and I do love it when casting is perfect in every sense.

Rambo First Blood

Stallone is back. The good news is that I am coming up to the end of my film list- I think that I have about 10 films left that were actually on the list and that is good because it means that by the end of the week I should be good to go and can just watch films for fun.

Hopefully this is the last Stallone film on the list for this year because I am actually not his biggest fan. Can't see the hype around him, he's another Schwarzenegger type guy in that he is the same in everything that he does but he is moody, grouchy, grunts a lot and is strong and particularly unattractive so he is ideal for this role. No emotion, no, anything really.

Lovely scenery, great music, shame that it was starring Stallone. A typical eighties action film. Little emotion or quality but some great music and some fantastic acting from the teenager who comes up against him. Stallone can't even look angry and that is a real shame- like seriously? Show something!

The film itself is actually quite boring. They made more than one of these films but it's basically another Die Hard film- hardly any plot and even less acting. A forest, a guy with a gun and a knife and a lot of idiotic police officers and that's the entire plot. Just because the poster will often pop up on movie quiz's it may be one to become familiar with but it's not one that should actually be added to your film list any time soon.

Law Abiding Citizen

Gerard Butler and Jamie Foxx star against each other which is always going to be an interesting battle.

We all remember Butler from 300 and even Rock N Rolla, we know that he can pack the punches and that he can also take them. We also know that he is not a man to be messed with so when the films starts in the way that it did there was only going to be one outcome. Don't get me wrong, don't think rule out a surprise triumph from Foxx in the end but for most of the time Butler is always on top. Not that we don't love watching Jamie Foxx put on the suit and play the law man but you're never quite convinced that he is going to come out on top.

Butler is perfect. It's a performance not seen from him ever before. Compassion, aggression, tactician, calculation, everything is in this performance. Never, not once, does he look like a psychopath, does he look out of control in anything that he does. Not a lack of emotion but extreme controlled emotion. It's like the director shut him in a box for a week and told him that he couldn't display any emotion except for when he was fed a steak. Likewise, with Jamie Foxx we get the same kind of feel except when his family is mentioned. Normally I would moan about the lack of emotion and state that the performances were too controlled but they weren't, his was perfect, the things that mattered were clearly seen in his eyes. He can take a punch, he can take the beating but the look says 'Whatever you've got I'll return with interest' and it is a priceless look to be able to deliver. For every display and performance that we saw from Butler, we saw a worthy opponent in Foxx.

A really violent film and I would recommend that anyone who is epileptic, has a heart condition, or suffers from mental health issues should stay clear of this film because it could cause a lot of medical problems. It's a great film in so many ways but it is a really difficult film to watch and understand. Worthy of the nominations? Yes. Necessary for everything shown in the film to be shown? Debatable and personally I wish that some of the things had not been shown but that's just me and there are others who would disagree.

Amour

Entirely in French. If you don't speak French or understand enough French to be comfortable watching a film in French then make sure that you find a version with subtitles. It won the Palme D'or and an academy award for best film in a foreign language. The film also made history with Emanuella Riva being the oldest actor nominated for best actress award.

Romantic drama film focusing on two retired music teachers- one has a stroke and this just takes you through everything that happens after she has a stroke. There's nothing particularly exciting about this film but that's not really the point of this film. Amour, if anyone speaks French will understand that it means 'Love' and that this film is all about love during old age. I've just spent some time in hospital and there was a couple there who really didn't seem like they loved each other, they really gave off the wrong impression, they were nothing like this film and being able to see the exact opposite to what I saw in hospital is brilliant.

Amour is a film for a Sunday afternoon, a film that doesn't necessarily bring you to tears but one that you are able to watch calmly, to focus on and to appreciate. Some things in life are beautiful without you really being able to explain as to why they are and this is one of them. The film is a work of art, explaining about old age and also showing how love can keep everyone going. I think that we would probably all like to think that when we get old and are dying we will have our partner/ other half to look after us when we suffer and need them the most. Maybe this is a film to watch with your family or your partner and it just helps you to appreciate what you have.

The Road

From what the plot says this film is simply about a man (Viggo Mortensen- A History of Violence, The Lord of The Rings) defending his son on a dangerous journey. The posters make it look like 'The Revenant', which was a shocking film and has already been reviewed on this blog so let us hope that because Viggo Mortensen is actually a much better actor than Leonardo DiCaprio (in our opinion) that this film will be nothing like 'The Revenant' and will be something better and different.

First up, we do like to see Mortensen looking homeless again. Unfortunately he is one of those men who looks better when unclean. When washed and clean he is not particularly attractive. The narration is not suited to a voice like his. The music behind it was brilliant and he did his best with it and in a way there probably wasn't anyone else to narrate the opening but it didn't really work for him, for the roughness in his voice. No man should ever show his child how to kill himself with a gun and no man should ever try and make their child kill them and then kill themselves.

Flashbacks help to make the story less boring. Within the first 15 minutes he is showing his son how to kill himself and someone else- that kinda tells you that the film is over. The only way to make the film better is to have some flashbacks so that those who went to the cinema to see it didn't feel like they had wasted their money on being charged for a full film and only receiving fifteen minutes of it. Talk about a way to make a really messed up film- the guy ends up shooting his own son! Whoever came up with this script needs help!

The feel of this film is '28 Days Later' crossed with 'The Revenant'. In short, there aren't many people and it is quite boring. Another thing is that if you are like me and find the religious references boring and start making associations to 'Noah' and other somewhat not particularly interesting films like that then you are going to find this film boring. Nothing much especially shows any real quality in it. Acting is par, script is par- the music is good but the plot is super boring. I wouldn't recommend watching it unless you really have a burning desire to, it's not one that you would take a chance on, it doesn't make for a great night in, it just makes for a good film to fall asleep in front of.

I realise that I am something like 4 days behind- apologies for that- interesting times over here. That does mean that tomorrow I will try and review two film and on Sunday three. I do have a week of holiday so there is time to review films more frequently to make up for the missed days- just bear with me.

Zodiac

A lot of Mark Ruffalo recently. I didn't know that he had been in so many films but hey, let's embrace it because he's brilliant in everything that we have seen him in so far.

Sort of a psychological thriller... not really sure but i'll explain and you can decide. Zodiac is an unsolved case of multiple murders spread throughout the years. 25,000 suspects and they narrowed it down to one guy but the handwriting didn't match and people retired/ got fired/ drank too much and the case started to slip away. Mark Ruffalo never gave up and neither did Jake Gyllenhaal but in the end the suspect actually died before they could arrest him. Needless to say that the murders stopped so all evidence would suggest that it was him but an arrest was never officially made.

Ruffalo is, as stated before, brilliant. He plays a cop like it's his day job. He plays any character like it's his day job, it's effortless and just sublime. You don't realise that you are watching a film (unless you are watching it in a refrigerator like I am) when you watch his character. Next to him Robert Downey Jr is perfectly himself. This guy isn't particularly known for his versatility, with him so far managing about three roles in his entire film history- that being Sherlock Holmes, Iron Man and his character from Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Nevertheless, three is more than Gyllenhaal has managed so we shouldn't complain too much. You know it's him, he's wacky and eccentric and all in all really quite entertaining to watch but at the end of the day he is nothing more than Robert Downey Jr turning up in a costume and delivering some lines.
Next to Gyllenhaal he looks like one of the best actors on the planet. What do we have to do to get some emotion from this guy? Seriously! This guy has not been a good actor since he was in Donnie Darko and that was years ago. I wanted so much for him to show some emotion and not be another Ben Affleck because the world already has one of those and does not need another one but he didn't, not when he was scared, not when he was excited- it was all the same and it was boring and unconvincing. The film is actually really good but you almost have to filter him out so that you can enjoy the film because he is slowly eating away at your soul. I can't spend my life not watching films just because he is in them!

Having said all that- the film is good and I didn't realise that it was actually a case in America so I learnt something new today.

Until tomorrow- over and out!

A Good Year.

Riddley Scott and Russel Crowe once again team up. For those of you who do not understand the references there Russel Crowe and Riddley Scott teamed up for Gladiator and Robin Hood. It is common knowledge that once actors and directors have teamed up to make one successful movie they are more likely to team up again. Actors have their favourite directors, as proven by Johnny Depp and Tim Burton. Same goes for Russel Crowe and Riddley Scott.

This is about the man who had it all. The man who could play the stock market, play all the other players and play most of the world but he could not play his dead uncle. So simple- your uncle dies so sell his massive estate and go back to work earning lots of money and generally being considered to be a total 'prick'. Russel Crowe with his typical 'British' accent that sounds not really anything like a 'British' accent that any normal person would have. It is entertaining to watch people that aren't actually from London try and do a London accent based on 'The Queens English'. Only the Queen and a few other people actually talk like that (Rupert Everett) and most stockbrokers don't talk like that at all. Nevertheless, accent aside, he is very good at being a total 'prick'. There isn't much to his role, just be upper class and up yourself- oh, and occasionally shag a woman who looks at you twice.

Freddie Highmore plays the somewhat emotionless young Maximilian. It's the same performance from him, he's not a particularly great person for showing any emotion. I've seen so many films with him in and hoped that somewhere along the line he would learn how to express emotion but it is so rare that he actually manages to do it that we just can't understand why he was constantly cast in films. You can see him turning in to the guy that Russel Crowe was- you can see him turning in to the emotionless guy who never expresses any emotion.

Albert Finney- nice to see him in something else that wasn't a bad attempt at playing Poirot. He was very impressive and much better than anything else that I had seen him in before. Rafe Spall, nice to see him in something else and nice to be able to compare him. Choice of costume was a little disgusting but one will assume that it was not actually his choice and let him off for wearing suits that contain pink in them.

'A Good Year' is a pleasant film. When you are bored or just want to relax in the evening then this is the type of film that you could watch. It's not a wine drinking film or a family film but it's nice to be able to watch a film for the sake of watching a film sometimes.

Constantine

Keanu Reeves in a similar role to one played by Nicolas Cage in the film 'City of Angels' but this time with greater conviction as undertaking the role of John Constantine, the man chosen to perform the exorcists, the man who can go in to hell to see if souls are there or not, a man who has not made it into heaven and is not an angel. This role works better for him because fighting demons and exorcising them works better than trying to convince the world that he is an angel.

The first real point to be made about this film is that the soundtrack is fantastic. There is very much an 'Eminem' feel to it (anyone who is familiar with the song 'Loose Yourself' will understand but the tune played on the guitar really does work well for the film. If the film was shot in 'Film Noir' style then it would not be out of place next to 'Sin City'. No real music throughout the film but just those chords and it is the simplest and most perfect theme (alongside the Jaws theme) to have been created for a film.

What does Keanu Reeves have the Nicolas Cage doesn't? Emotion, Not loads of it, hardly any (if we are being honest) but just enough to be serious and sort of mysterious. Reeves isn't trying to be the hero who falls in love, he is trying to beat up demons and exorcise them so in this case serious works well for him. A better film choice is probably what it comes down to. He actually has the measure of the film really well and if he is that guy who is always going to be the serious guy who has to die, be strong and never fall in love then so be it, at least he understands that his career is always going to be like that.

Cate Blanchett. Can't be mistaken for any other woman in the world, it's something to do with her bone structure but there is no way that you can mistake her for anyone else in the world. As the angel Gabriel she is stunning. The plot works well for her and she is actually perfectly suited to the role. Not a massive star in the film but she is brilliant. Imagine her with wings and then watch the film to see how close your imagination was to the actual character.

This film is actually really good and you don't have to be a catholic to enjoy it. The exorcisms are more realistic than what you have seen in 'The Exorcism' and the religion is more accurate. It's a film that anyone can watch.

Moon

A little confusing at first and I have to admit that for the entire film I was slightly confused by it. At first glance it appears to be similar to 'The Martian' but the more that you get into it the more you realise that it is not at all. It's about clones and how the cost of preserving and maintaining clones of one astronaut is cheaper than that of sending a new astronaut to the space station every three years.

With a small cast and a small budget one has to admire what Duncan Jones has done with this film. Same Rockwell takes on the task of being all the 'Sams. Watching him playing a dying character on screen at the same time as a young, fresh Sam who could probably beat up anyone in his path is very entertaining and not because it was funny, it wasn't, more because there is great skill to be admired there. The overall film isn't particularly entertaining, it doesn't have the terrible music like 'The Martian' did but it did have a fantastic scene of trying to dance to Katrina and The Waves 'Walking on Sunshine' which we have to admit is a bit of a personal favourite on the blog.

The plot is to help the younger Sam to escape in the rescue pod that comes to kill them off. Older Sam realises that he doesn't have much time left and that he probably can't make it to earth so they plan it all out and he launches the rescue pod which takes younger clone Sam back to earth for him to reveal what has been going on. There isn't much around that and there aren't many magical moments or moments when you thought that it was a standout moment for the performer or scrip writer. Easy to follow but all in all quite boring.
The film did well at box office and got good reviews but it isn't an underrated film and it certainly isn't one that is worth watching time and time again. Seen it, don't regret it but don't particularly need to watch it again.

Notorious

If anyone bothers to scroll down to the bottom of this blog and check the list they will see that there is a film called 'Notorious Man' on this blog. Anyone that is really familiar with films or google will soon realise that there is no such film and I was clearly having a mental moment when I couldn't read properly. This film is the one that should have been on the list and no it is not the Alfred Hitchcock film (that may or may not feature on the blog later).

Notorious is about the rapper Notorious B.I.G (Christopher Wallace). Released in 2009 as a biographical drama, the film starts off with a school boy being told by a teacher that he is going to grow up and become a garbage man because he skips school a lot. The boy then does the maths and works out that a garbage man gets paid $4000 more than a teacher and has that wonderful moment of the child showing up the teacher, which even though I am a teacher, I have to admit that I do enjoy seeing.

The man who died at 24... What to say about him that people don't already know? I didn't even know who this guy was so I learnt a lot from this film with the most important thing being that we can't change others, we can only change ourselves. The film is great, the music isn't entirely my cup of tea but I do appreciate most genre's of music and Rap is a valid and even mostly decent if not entertaining form of music at times. A form of speech and expression, Rap brought people together and was a slightly easier way of connecting with people than what had been around before.

I don't know any of the actors and I don't know who Notorious B.I.G actually was but I do know one of his songs from the scene in 'Ten Things I Hate About You' when Cat is drunk and table dancers at Bogey's party. This and the quote up above are the two things that I have taken away from this film. Nevertheless, it is a good film and a very educational film. 

Good Morning Vietnam.

One of the most hilarious war films I have ever seen. Robin Williams is pure class, his voices, his face, everything about him makes you laugh and to cap it all off his jokes are actually funny and his accents are better than decent.

This is a war film that has earned its place on the blog. Distracting from the Vietnam war there is a radio DJ who makes everyone laugh. He owns the radio and most of Vietnam by the time he has finished and has a fantastic taste in music to go with his comedy. Alongside Forest Whitacker (The Butler) this guy seems at times to be unstoppable and for the simple reason that he is making everyone laugh. Those that don't like him can't get him off the air because when they do they get thousands of complaints from the soldiers who have lost their entertainment. This guy, even though he is just playing himself is constantly reminding us what the world lost when he died. There will never be anyone quite like him, who can do the voices with the face and be generally funny with every comment made. It's more than comedy, it's entertainment.

Watching this film is so easy. Allow Robin Williams to do what he does best and just watch as everyone else can do nothing but laugh. We all know that he is brilliant and we know what to expect from him but that doesn't stop us from being in a way completely unprepared for every line that he delivers. Yes there is a plot and it gets a little more complicated and in a way takes you by surprise just because you were so immersed by what Williams was doing and saying that you can almost forget to keep following the rest of the plot. He is the type of character that is needed in every war. Most commanding officers don't like funny guys because they play pranks at the wrong time and get themselves and others killed but if you can give them a radio and let others enjoy their humour from a distance without necessarily endangering their lives then you have a win scenario.

Nothing is going to be straight forward with him in the cast, we know that, we expect it and we know that to an extent he has never been good with authority. In every film that I have seen him actually physically feature in he has always had a problem with authority, he will push it and push it until everyone hates him and wants to hurt him and either he gets what he wants or he gets sent away by someone with higher authority who doesn't like him and is going to do something about it. What his character does, even after ignoring all the warnings is that he says what he feels needs to be said. Yes, his job is to make people laugh but he also says everything that needs to be said and the problem is that people will miss him if he is taken away from the radio so he really holds all the power. I like a character like that, it reminds me of me- not good with authority and clearly aware of how to manipulate the situation.

Definitely one for the collection. Anything with Robin Williams in is worth keeping but this is another one that is worth it because of how good it is, how funny it is and not just because it has that name to sell it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwSra5p8MDw