“Danger is real, fear is a choice”

 After Earth is based on an idea by Will Smith and stars him and son Jaden.  Set in the future when earth is no longer habitable by humans, Cypher Raige (played by Will Smith), and son Kitai (played by Jaden Smith), crash land on Earth.

I normally have a lot of time for Will Smith, but I’m afraid this film is simply terrible!  Nothing much actually happens.  Cypher is injured during the crash landing, so son Kitai goes on (mostly boring), mission to save the day.

I should’ve realised when I saw it was co-written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan responsible for films like ‘Signs’, that After Earth may be disappointing.  The film is supposed to have a serious environmental message, if this is the case it’s very well hidden, because I failed to spot it, (and I was looking)!

There really is nothing that makes this film worth watching, even on tv, save your money and give it a miss!

“You wouldn’t by any chance, happen to be from an advanced society of small people?”

“Some are more advanced than others!”

‘Epic’ is the latest animation from the creators of Ice Age and Rio.  Mk (voiced by Amanda Seyfried), returns home to live with her somewhat eccentric father after the death of her mother.  MK’s father is convinced that there is a whole society of tiny people living in the forest.  MK is totally unconvinced, until something happens to change her mind!  Link to trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tD5itOMWqg

Epic has had a mixed response from the critics, with many point to the fact it appears to be an amalgamation of many other films, e.g. ‘Honey I Shrunk the Kids’ and ‘A Bug’s Life’.  While this does seem the case, it shouldn’t be used to detract from the fact ‘Epic’ is still a great film in it’s own right.

The animation is superb and the money spend on the 3D version hasn’t been wasted.  The balance of 3D is right and definitely adds to the film, it boosts a cast of Hollywood names who do a great job with a very witty script.  Parts of the story have strong pagan overtones and it carries an important environmental message throughout.  Because of the razor sharp wit, I think this will appeal to adults as well as children.  I found it mesmerizing

See it if you liked: A Bug’s Life, Antz, Honey I Shrunk the Kids

“I hope she grows up to be a pretty little fool. That’s about the best a girl can hope for these days, to be a pretty little fool.”

The Great Gatsby in the latest film adaptation of the 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald.  It’s directed by Baz Luhrmann who also co-wrote the screenplay.  I was not previously very aware of the novel or earlier film adaptations prior to seeing the latest offering.

I was looking forward to seeing this film as the trailer looked glamorous.  But unfortunately glamour and decadence is really all this film has to offer, it almost feels like the entire film is a trailer for itself!

Set in 1920′s America, the story unfolds through the character of Nick Carraway (played by Tobey Maguire), narrating the tale during therapy sessions for depression and alcohol addiction.  There are a series of long flashbacks, occasionally cutting back to Nick the narrator.  It appears Jay Gatsby (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), is a millionaire but nobody is quite sure how he got his fortune.  Link to trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/user/warnerbrosuktrailers?v=3GcqQ2HDyX8

For me there was just too much emphasis on the glamour and partying and way too little time spent on the actual story.  At first the parties are impressive, but with the film running for 2 hours and 22 minutes, the party scenes start to wear thin!  Despite being set in the 1920′s, the film has a very modern soundtrack.  While some people may feel this works, to me it just felt totally wrong.

The actors put in a decent performance, (particularly Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan), but I still don’t feel it’s enough to make up for the film’s shortcomings.  I saw the 3D version and while it is packed with enough 3D to make you feel you’re getting you’re monies worth, there is simply no need for this film to be in 3D.  I’m a fan of 3D, but this film does not naturally fall into that category.

See it if you liked: Moulin Rouge

“Threat is eminent, and I have to protect the one thing that I can’t live without. That’s you.”

This is another film that would be easy to some up in a couple of lines, (and for once, not because it’s bad)!  It’s everything you’ve come to expect from the Iron Man films with a load of extra robot Iron Men chucked in for good measure!

So what’s good about the film?…. Robert Downey Jr. still shines as Iron Man, he manages to be charming enough to get away with being arrogant! The introduction of Maya (played by Rebecca Hall), an old flame of Stark’s, adds an interesting thread to the storyline.  I would say the best performance comes from Ben Kingsley, who plays the terrorist ‘The Mandarin’.  He delivers sharp ‘one liners’ so well you’d think he’d spent his life in stand up comedy rather than acting.  Link to trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aV8H7kszXqo

For a comic book based film to be good I think the villains have to be equally good, (if not better), than the hero, and they are!  I’m always careful not to include ‘spoilers’ in my reviews, so I’ll just say I was very impressed and a bit scared of the villains ‘super power’.

There’s plenty of explosions and action, a fair amount of comedy mixed in with some scary and romantic moments.  Not Oscar material, but good value entertainment.  I suppose the one negative is I thought the 3D was average and didn’t particularly add to the film.  If you enjoyed the other Iron Man films this one won’t let you down.

See it if you like: Iron Man 1&2, The Avengers

“If you drive like lightening you’re gonna crash like thunder!”

Directed and co written by Derek Cianfrance, ‘The Place Beyond the Pines’ is based in Schenectady, an upstate New York town near the state capital of Albany.  It unfolds over a 17 year period, and is a film in three carefully interlinked sections.  It begins with the story of Luke Glanton, (played by Ryan Gosling).  Luke earns his living on a motorbike as a stunt rider and is a bit of a drifter.

The film then shifts focus onto Avery Cross (played by Bradley Cooper), a policeman also based in Schenectady.  Finally the focus is on the respective children of Luke and Avery.

It has been a while since I felt a film deserved to be described as groundbreaking, but I feel The Place beyond the Pines is groundbreaking for a number of reasons……  Firstly the way the story is constructed is excellent!  Whilst I’m sure the format is not unique, it’s not something that you see often, and certainly not so well done.

Secondly the style of filming is uncompromising and adds a sense of realism that is almost unnerving at times.  For long takes and hand held camera shots to work well, the film crew and the actors have to be of the highest quality and they definitely are in this film.

Thirdly as already mentioned, the actors are superb, in particular Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper and Dane DeHaan.  A slight observation is that perhaps Gosling is in danger of getting ‘typecast’ as some elements of Luke’s character are similar to that of the character known as ‘Driver,’ he played in the film ‘Drive’.  That said, he continues to play that kind of character very well.

I thoroughly enjoyed this film, certainly not a ‘popcorn flick’, but also not too overly complex that it loses the audience.  I thought I’d figured out where it was going, but then it changed direction.  It takes a moment to readjust, but it’s all part of the bigger picture.  If you’re a film enthusiast, you must see this film!

See it if you liked: The Town, Drive

“I’m sorry about the state of the house”

“It’s ok, I think we have insurance!”

I’m going to try hard not to sum this film up in two lines, (as that would be easier to do and possibly more fitting with what it deserves)!…

Olympus Has Fallen is about a terrorist invasion of The White House.  Once personal bodyguard to the president, but now out of favour.  Mike Banning (played by Gerard Butler), gets to step in and attempt to redeem himself by taking on the terrorists single handily.

This film is not only filled with clichés, it actively embraces them!  The level of patriotism oozing throughout is so high that it almost be mistaken for a presidential campaign advertisement, (for a very pro gun candidate)!

The established ‘names’ in the cast e.g. Gerard Butler and Morgan Freeman aren’t really enough to add credibility to the film – ‘a workman is only as good as his tools!’  

However if you love action movies, then this one’s for you!  As it’s fast paced, jam packed with action and easy to follow.  To be fair, it was exactly what I was expecting it to be.  Which left me disappointed, as I felt it was just ‘going through the motions’ and made no attempt to deviate in any way from the standard format of films with a similar storyline.

See it if you liked: The Expendables, A Good Day to Die Hard

“Is it possible to miss a place you’ve never been? To mourn a time you’ve never lived?”

Every so often a film comes out that I decide should be reviewed, but I have no idea where to start!  ‘Oblivion’ is one of those films, so bear with me and I’ll try to do my best…

Set in the year 2073, earth has been left uninhabitable after a war with an alien race which resulted in nuclear weapons being used.  Jack Harper (played by Tom Cruise) and Victoria are a two person team and lovers, stationed on earth to help farm the remaining resources e.g water, before joining the remaining humans on their new planet Titan.  There are alien scavengers (scavs), who attempt to disrupt the work being carried out by Jack and Victoria who have ball shaped airborne robots know as ‘drones’, to defend them.  All is running relatively smoothly, until Jack finds a crashed ship with human survivors, which changes everything.  Link to trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A27xPYvqERw

I think die hard sci-fi fans may love this film and other people may be left thinking ‘What the?!!’ at times.  I’m not a mega sci-fi fan and came away feeling pretty neutral about Oblivion…. For all of its twists and turns and attempts to be ‘clever’, I’m not sure it offers us anything new.  It’s like a patchwork quilt made up of other films!… Star Wars and Total Recall to name two.

At the risk of sounding ‘ageist’, which I am not… It’s about time Tom Cruise learnt to grow old gracefully and stop trying to play roles that are 15 years too young for him!  I felt this was very evident in Oblivion.  If sci-fi is your thing then give it a watch, if not and there’s other films out you want to see, watch them instead!

See it if you liked: Prometheus, Tron Legacy, Total Recall

Yayy!!!  Watched it last night!  I think I could call it fantasy Tolkien. but who cares LOL!!!  I LOVED it! Yeah it went on, and half the stuff wasn’t in the book, but you know, it’s Tolkien and Peter Jackson, so just enjoy if you’re a fan, which I am! The longer the better for me LOL!!!  Getting lost in Tolkiens world is as good escape as any!

Of course we’ve been manicly busy, and have put some new, new designs on !  We’re well pleased and they’re going well already, which is excellent!

Morwenna Top	Lunalily Skirt	Badger Furlero Bolero	Morwenna Underbust Top

I hope you all had a good Easter!  We worked a bit, walked a bit and went on a Badger march   It was icy cold, but loads of people turned up and then we all went back to the Pub!  My kinda day really!!!   My badger ears turned up late, but I’ve still worn them

This weekend, I’ve finally started my seeds off, it’s been so cold, and still is, but I can’t wait any longer!  It’s got to get warmer ! Then last night we sat down to watch the Hobbit with lots of tea-lights,  our home made Satein Steaks, dripping in Blue cheese, home made onion rings, fries and salad!  Delicious LOL!!!

Here’s a beautiful song to warm your heart, on yet another cold Sunday :)

Hope you’re having a good weekend!

Lots of Love

Sarah

xxxx

“You were trying to kill me and now you’re protecting me…. This is a strange world!”

‘The Host’ is the latest Stephenie Meyer novel to receive the film treatment, (screenplay by Andrew Niccol).  I was looking forward to seeing The Host.  I like thrillers and was expecting some kind of modern take on Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Sadly, I couldn’t have been more wrong!…

The Host starts of promisingly enough, Melanie (played by Saoirse Ronan), is on the run from the ‘Seekers’.  She is one of the few humans left on Earth after an invasion from ‘peace loving’ aliens… If you think that sounds wrong, it is!  But the terribly polite aliens do not believe they are doing anything wrong by taking over human bodies, they are ‘saving us from our savage nature’!

Whilst the film begins with some signs of potential, it soon turns into a boring love triangle. Hmmm… That rings a bell, oh yeah, the Twilight Saga, same author!  Generally I’m a big fan of recycling, but not when it comes to film scripts.  The problem is there is only any kind of action in the beginning of the film.  I think the rest is meant to be carried by soul searching and realisation, but far from being a revelation, it just becomes boring and irritating.  Link to trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5x1TZLcMjgA

The ‘moral tone’ that is ever present in Meyer’s work is stronger than ever in The Host, at times I felt I was being lectured!  The aliens or ‘Seekers’ do not instil the sense of fear that was present in films like Invasion of the Body Snatchers.  It’s such a shame, if someone other than Meyer had written The Host it could’ve been so much better!  I now realise my affection for the Twilight Saga stems purely from my love of the vampire film.  I’ll think twice before seeing another Stephenie Meyer inspired screenplay.

“Your memory is locked in a cage with enough force the lock can be broken”

‘Trance’ is the latest offering from director Danny Boyle, whose other films include Shallow Grave and Trainspotting.  I’m not going to say much about the plot, as I’m always careful not to include ‘spoilers’ in my reviews.  The storyline revolves around trying to locate a valuable stolen painting through using hypnosis.

This film has some of Danny Boyle’s ‘trademarks’….A heavy imposing soundtrack and some surreal sequences.  These factors could be make or break as to whether you’ll like the film, because if you find them irritating it’s likely they will spoil the film for you.  For me, they just fitted in with what I was expecting from director Boyle.

I really enjoyed Trance.  This may be partly due to the fact I have seen a lot of children’s films recently, to watch a psychological thriller that is a bit different from the usual, requiring your attention and thought, was a breath of fresh air!

The central character ‘Simon’ is virtually never off the screen, which is fine by me as he’s played by the very lovely James McAvoy (pictured below):

Trance has received a lukewarm reaction from film critics who point to amongst other things, some over the top acting.  Most things about this film are over the top, it is quite self-indulgent in nature, if you’re looking for logic throughout you’ll be disappointed.  There are plenty of loop holes to be found if you go looking for them.  Trance as the title suggests, involves suspending your cynicism and allowing yourself to go on the journey, if you do this it’s likely you’ll really enjoy Trance, as I did.

See it if you liked: Inception, Source Code