Retro Movie Review – Robocop
Now revisiting Robocop in 2014 is a plan fraught with risks and Brazilian born director/documentarian José Padilha hasn’t really helped matters by choosing some elements within the first version to revisit while casting aside others. His more moralistic take is interesting while his almost complete discarding of some of the eighties version’s most humorous elements (mainly the hilarious TV ads) have taken a lot of the fun out. Original director Paul Verhoeven’s biting social satire ...
Boss Level Movie Review
It’s a groundhog day scenario that is peppered with ever-increasing levels of gratuitous violence that ultimately end with Roy’s very unpleasant demise every time. This is until he figures things out and sets out to right quite a few wrongs that exist in his life. He has to reconnect with his son, save his ex-wife Jemma (Naomi Watts) from her evil boss Col. Clive (Mel Gibson), and then save the world, You know, easy stuff.
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The science-fiction elements of the ...
The Truffle Hunters Movie Review
To them it is more than an occupation, it is a calling and their partners in this way of life are of the four-legged variety. These friendships seem to endure far more regularly than the ones with fellow humans. They are completely content with their dogs, nature, and the hunt.
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There is humour in much of what they do and a hard-headedness that drives them to solitary pursuits. There are also moments that draw parallels between seller and buyer that mimic drug ...
The Little Things Movie Review
Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto head an impressive cast, and the three play to their established strengths. Denzel is the stoic yet intense one, Rami delivers the emotion with a minimalist flair and Leto is his usual super creepy self. One wonders what dead animals he sent to the Big D and Rami this time out.
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The story involves an uncaught serial killer in the Los Angeles area and the victims that have been created amongst the living and the dead. ...
Retro Movie Review – Paul
The two dweebs have rented a huge RV after a visit to Comic Con and are in the midst of a road trip to visit all the cult friendly UFO locations in the western United States. They soon hook up with Paul and the craziness begins (sort of). For a film with such an unconventional premise, it quickly becomes a very conventional road movie.
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This conventionality results is a story that is more human nature than Science Fiction and as such has some obvious lessons to ...
Retro Movie Review – Micmacs
Jeunet’s films always have a political edge (even if it’s just personal politics) and an opinion about the state of play and in Micmacs; he has the weapons industry firmly in his sights. Our main character Bazil (Dany Boon) has had his life drastically affected by the tools of the arms trade and decides to fight back.
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The humour in this film is of a very psychical nature and a reasonable starting point of description would be the works of Charlie Chaplin. The ...
Retro Movie Review – Morning Glory
The humour comes out most strongly when Becky become desperate to raise the show’s ratings and deal with the old school curmudgeon Mike Pomeroy (Harrison Ford) who as a link to the real news reporting of the past stands firmly in the way of her plans. The reel where those plans come to fruition in the film’s funniest twenty minutes.
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The film has strangely uneven pacing and sometimes lacks direction, so there are times when your interest wanes in the proceedi...
Retro Movie Review – Monsters Vs Aliens
The story revolves around the government’s cover up of actual monsters that inhabit our planet. These monsters are eventually revealed to the public when the earth in invaded by aliens, who of course have ideas of world domination.
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Setting the story in the world of CGI animation gives the filmmakers carte blanch to create and destroy what ever they want and this leads to some outstanding moments of mayhem including the destruction of the Golden Gate Bridge.
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Retro Movie Review – Precious
The film also provides a platform for some amazing performances. First time actor Gabourey Sidibe delivers a heart wrenching performance as the title character, fact is, the acting is so strong throughout that it transforms your feelings about a number of key characters. Mo'Nique who plays Precious’ mother is so repugnant is the early part of the film that you absolutely hate her, but through a great script and pure acting talent, there is a scene that actually makes you feel sympathy for ...
Retro Movie Review – Mr. Pip
The film based on a novel by Lloyd Jones is set in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea during the civil war there during the early nineties. The story revolves around Matilda (Xzannjah Matsi) and the relationship she has with her mother Dolores (Xzannjah’s real life mother Healsville Joel), Mr. Watts (Hugh Laurie) the only white man in their small village and the novel Great Expectation by Charles Dickens.
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Matilda’s somewhat idyllic life is brought to a crashing ...
