12 Years a Slave (2013) Movie Review

12 YEARS A SLAVE (2013) MOVIE REVIEW

Let me just say this, if you have ever wanted to see a more emotionally draining and depressing film, then this may be what you're looking for.

Based on the biographical novel of the same name, this film follows the hardships of Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) as he is kidnapped from his home in up-state New York and is forced to into slavery after being betrayed by two newly acquainted "friends". Now to be honest, if these film wasn't based on a true story, I feel like it would not have had as much of an impact as it did as throughout the entire story, the events that occur just blew my mind and it made me open my eyes and wonder "Did that actually happen?!?!". Seriously, this film will make you feel thankful for the age in which we live in where it is free of slavery and intense racism against the black man. Anyhow, one of the other things I loved about the story was the fact that while it did make you despise the white men who beat him, it did actually make you feel somewhat sorry for certain slave owners, with Benedict Cumberbatch's character being one of them. Overall, I found the story all compelling and really set the stage for the entire film. 

Still of Chiwetel Ejiofor as Solomon Northup

Like I mentioned earlier, one of the biggest things that this film had going for it was the simple fact that all the events were based on a true story. This automatically makes the audience sympathize with our main protagonist and manages to cause us to at some points in the film, ball our eyes out in utter despair for this unfortunate man. As well as this, I felt that the best part of this film by far were the characters and actors and portrayed within the film. Firstly, Chiwetel Ejiofor managed to bring such an incredible performance and managed to bring such an emotional part to this character through his use of words and mannerisms. Now for his polar opposite, Michael Fassbender in this film was, in my opinion, just phenomenal in this film as it is something very different from anything else he has done in the past and was just such an evil man and is more or less portrayed as the devil in his human state. As for Lupita Nyong'o, I felt that while she was incredible in this film, I do feel her character was unfortunately beaten down too much, especially by Fassbender and his wife whom seemed to simply despise her for her actions, though for some reason, Fassbender's character seemed to be attracted to her for this. Making him an even bigger dick. Paul Dano is one of these people in the film who I continue to emphasize that he is easily the most underrated actor working as everything he has done is just phenomenal, including this. But I digress, Dano was actually incredible in this film as he seemed to be one of the slave drivers that got sheer joy and excitement from harming these slaves like a child on Christmas morning. As bad as that sounds, I really can't put it any other way without it being worse or just as bad. As for Benedict Cumberbatch in this film, I felt that he also brought a terrific performance as he while he was the owner of all these slaves, he seemed to care more about them as people and wasn't as terrible as someone like...oh....I dunno...Michael Fassbender in this movie! Anyhow, Benedict really did bring something to the table with this film as he seemed so genuine in his actions, whether they be positive or negative. As for Paul Giamatti, I felt he was really good in this film as his character was a man whom simply sold slaves of to slave drivers, resulting in Solomon being sold off to other men. His performance was also really good and much like Cumberbatch, he seemed genuine no matter what it was. Lastly, Brad Pitt was actually the least talented in this film, though that is still saying alot as he was terrific in his small though significant role and managed to bring a sympathetic and supportive role to his...well..supporting role. Overall, every single in this film managed to bring something both old and new to the table, though managed to keep it fresh and unfortunately relate-able.

Still of Michael Fassbender, Lupita Nyong'o and
Chiwetel Ejiofor

Overall, what can I say about this film? It has won Best Film at the Oscars as well as 2 others for Best Writing and Best Supporting Actress. Seriously, this film is easily one of the greats and will go down in history as one of the best Hollywood has ever seen.

OVERALL: 9.7/10

 

RoboCop (2014) Movie Review

ROBOCOP (2014) MOVIE REVIEW

Going into this film, I was expecting a mediocre remake that makes the original appear and horrendous and utter garbage. However, what I got was a pleasantly surprising, entertaining movie.

In 2028 Detroit, Police Officer Alex Murphy (Joel Kinnaman) becomes critically injured whilst in the line of duty, with third degree burns across 80% of his barely existent body. After seeing this, Omnicorp soon realises that they can use this man to his advantage by constructing him into a half-man, half-machine police officer. Since this is a remake of one of my favourite action flicks, I was expecting that the film would treat the source material like trash and just more or less ignore the simple but powerful premise and meaning that this film shows. However, what I got was a story that I felt while did not have as strong as an impact as I hoped, it was still necessary and was played out very well as in the film, they attempt at bringing even more humanity to the character of Alex by giving him a reason to keep living. His family, and while they did not incorporate as much time into that aspect as I hoped, it was at least evident and showed in some scenes that his wife and son just want their husband/dad back to normal. Anyhow, I felt that the plot for the film was just as good as the original, even though some things were tweaked to make the film more relevant.  

Still of Joel Kinnaman as RoboCop

As before, I mentioned that this film really did delve deeper into the whole human side of Alex Murphy and the relationship he had with his doctor and the entire company. This happens to be one of the things that was handled incredibly well as at the beginning of the film when he realises what has happened to him, you really do see emotions of fear and shock in his face, which is more than likely why Joel was cast for this role. As well as this, I love how instead of just going along with it, Murphy straight up says to his doctor to pull the plug as he doesn't want to let his wife and son see him like this, which shows that his humanity  is still an important factor and in the end is what controls you. Although the humanity was handled quite well, there were a few parts in particular that I felt could have been shortened or even taken out. For example, in the beginning of the film, it shows these robots protecting this village in the Middle East and it also shows the residents attempting to fight back. While this scene does become significant later on in the film, you really do feel that the scene could have been shortened significantly and could have made this already long film shorter. Anyhow, the visuals shown in the film I actually thought were incredible and really did showcase what this suit could do as when RoboCop is just laying waste to everything, it is just entertaining to watch and is just a real joy and really does show what made the original great, which was the action. I also, unlike alot of people, actually do like the design given to him as it does show both suits in the film, with the original 80's one being a prototype and the new one being the fully functioning one, which i felt was really smart story telling. 

Still of Gary Oldman and Jackie Earle Haley

As for the acting, this is actually where the film really did surprise as the film does showcase some already well-known acting abilities. For example, the ones who are obviously the best actors in the film are in fact Gary Oldman, Jackie Earle Haley and Samuel L. Jackson. Having said that, you really can tell that they just phoned up Jackson to be in this film as you can tell he doesn't want be here and just wants his paycheck. Having said that, he was still good in his role, even if it wasn't needed. Anyhow, as for RoboCop himself, I felt that while he wouldn't have been my first pick, Joel Kinnaman was still good in the role and really did excel when he had to do serious and stoic facial expressions, which more or less is what he had to do in this film anyway so yeah. However, out of everyone in the film, the actor who I felt was the best by far was actually Michael Keaton as he just managed to bring this hilarious, serious and overall cocky performance to his character and managed to make this one his own through his dialogue and overall tone in his voice. Overall, the acting in the film was actually fairly surprising, considering I didn't think the movie itself was going to be good in the first place. 

Still of Gary Oldman, Jay Baruchel, Michael Keaton
 and Jennifer Ehle

In the end, RoboCop was more or less everything I wasn't expecting. It was entertaining, thrilling and even at times funny. Overall, while it could have been much better, it was still a good time at the movies and I would gladly watch it again...in about 2-3 years.

OVERALL: 7.3/10

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) Movie Review

THE WOLF OF WALL STREET (2013) MOVIE REVIEW

Remember how I said Prisoners was my favourite film of 2013? Well that may now have some serious competition. 

Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, this film follows him and his company through crime, corruption and his rise to the top and his descent to the absolute bottom. One of the things that managed to keep this film going is the fact that this ludicrous film is actually based on true events. This is made even more apparent when multiple times in the film, Jordan and his friends manage to get away with doing some of the most graphic acts ever put onto the big screen. Another thing that I absolutely loved in this film was the overall set-up in which Jordan is  a simple and honest man wanting to make a living, and then in a matter of days, he is corrupted by his peers and is suddenly the biggest name in the Wall Street game, hence his nickname "The Wolf of Wall Street". Anyhow, the story in this film was by far the most ridiculous and best one I have seen in a while and even with it's hilarity, it managed to keep me intrigued, even throughout the entire three hour run time. 

Still of Margot Robbie and Leonardo DiCaprio

As I said before, this film is based of the best-selling book of the same name, which in itself is the true story of Jordan Belfort and his successful life at the top of Wall Street. This obviously means that this film has alot of work to do in order to make it as reliable to the source material as it can, though in many cases, this film managed to be one of a kind. This is mainly due to the fact that many of the acts performed in the movie are just so ludicrously hilarious and reckless that you wouldn't expect a sane person to even consider performing these actions. For example, there is one scene where Jordan and Donnie take a dose of these tablets which say to be incredibly stronger than your average drug. Anyhow, upon taking it, they feel nothing at all though several hours later, the acts that these drugs make them do is just something you wouldn't expect to see in a movie nowadays. This is also one of the many things I loved about this film, which is the fact that the film knows exactly what it is. A ridiculous and incredibly crude film, which is exactly how it is marketed. If I were the average movie-goer and saw that it was a drama, I wouldn't be as excited for it. But the marketing team really did play their cards right in realising that a three hour film like this isn't supposed to be taken too seriously. Speaking of three hours, I actually thought that this was going to be one of the things I despised about the movie though in retrospect, it was actually one of the things I loved about the film as I had no idea when the film was going to end as there were several moments where it looked like it was going to end, but it just kept on going. And for a film like this, that is never a bad thing. 

Still of Jonah Hill and Leonardo DiCaprio

As for the acting, I mean....what else can I say but just no short of perfect. Throughout the film, I was attempting to pick out a weak actor/actress in the film and believe me when I say this, I just couldn't. Every single actor, whether big or small, managed to play their roles up perfectly. Leonardo DiCaprio in this film, in my opinion, it is without question his best performance he has ever graced us with. Seriously, if he doesn't win an Oscar for his role this year, there will be multiple riots within minutes. His character was just so fast talking and he just managed to make a serious moment so hilarious, like when he is more or less overdosing and he is just making the most ridiculous noises and faces, I honestly felt bad for laughing. Or maybe shouldn't have, I dunno, either way, it was phenomenal acting on his part. As for Jonah Hill as Jordan's best friend Donnie, he was also great in the film though I felt he should have stood out to me more as an actor, though he just didn't. Though I will give him the benefit as when most of his scenes consist of him and DiCaprio, it is extremely hard to hold your own. Others who stood out to me was actually minor roles in the film, these included Matthew McConaughey's small though significant role as Jordan's mentor and friend Mark Hanna. In his short though impacting scene, he had alot of energy and more or less set up for the entire movie. Others who stood out also include Jon Bernthal as Brad, who I actually really liked as both an actor and character as he was just the kind of guy that doesn't care about the money and more about the loyalty of his friends, oh and could also kick your ass if needed. Lastly, the final stand out for me at least was relatively well known actor Jean Dujarin as Jean Jacques Saurel who I also liked as an actor and character as he is more the foreign businessman who is a dick and is very fast talking, and he also seemed to be the polar opposite of Jordan at times which I loved. Overall, the acting was almost perfect if not for the sheer fact that I believe that nothing is perfect. 

Still of Leonardo DiCaprio, Margot Robbie and
Jon Bernthal

Overall, The Wolf of Wall Street is without question one of the best films I have seen in a long time and it has made me realise that films like this only come around once in a very long time.

OVERALL: 9.3/10

The Book Thief (2013) Movie Review

THE BOOK THIEF (2013) MOVIE REVIEW

Having hopes for this film, I was obviously expecting something a little more "different". What I wasn't expecting was this film to actually steal something other than books.

Based on the highly acclaimed novel of the same name, The Book Thief revolves around a young girl named Liesel Meminger (Sophie Nelisse) as she has been recently adopted due to the passing of her younger brother. After this unfortunate passing, she has now been adopted by an elderly couple named Hans (Geoffrey Rush) and Rosa Hubermann (Emily Watson). Now subjected to the terrors of WWII Germany, she must know attempt at finding sanctuary in the little town in which she now lives in. For the most part, I actually really enjoyed the entire plot of the film and how it played out. There were just so many elements and emotions that were explored in the film that made this film even more interesting and sickening at the same time. Although I have not read the book, I can say that this story, based on the movie alone, seemed to be reliable enough. Though one thing I am sceptical about is the fact that they focused little on the whole "Book Thief" aspect. Like I said, this may be the same for the book but since I cannot confirm this, I still had to point it out. Overall, the over-bearing message and story that this film held was incredibly effective from beginning to end. 

Still of Geoffrey Rush and Sophie Nelisse

Easily one of the best things this film has going for it was the fact that the source material is more or less timeless. With The Book Thief having such a large fanbase surrounding it, it would be almost impossible for them to screw up this book-to-film adaptation. Luckily for them, they managed to not screw it up as the film managed to tug on all the right string at the right time. And truly, I do mean this as at the end of the film, I was almost about to cry. Anyhow, one of the things that managed to make me do this was for one what was happening on screen and two, the score. Originally I was not aware of this but John Williams is actually the composer for this film and when I listened to a tiny sample again, you really can tell as the score is just impeccable. John managed to place all the right songs in the right places and also managed to make it work for the situation and characters within that scene. To be honest, I myself am actually surprised I cared that much about the score initially upon exiting the theatre as there are only a select number of films where the score stays with me. But never in a million years would I have guessed that this film would have been one of those films. Another thing that I loved about this film was the script as there are just so many quotable lines, with most of them coming from the narrator. Easily one of my favourite lines from the film has to be the first line uttered in the film. This quote, in my opinion, was just so powerful as it actually more or less set up the entire movie which I always find interesting when movies do this kind of thing. 

Still of Ben Schnetzer and Sophie Nelisse

For a film that doesn't hold any well known actors besides Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson, it still manages to showcase some incredible acting talent. Let's start with our lead, Sophie Nelisse who I thought while good, though I could have pictured any young actress playing her. Though since I can't name any I would have preferred, I still think she was great in her role. As for Geoffrey Rush, what can I say that hasn't been said before? This man has won an Academy Award and will more than likely win even more as he is just one of Hollywood's greatest. Oh and he was good in the movie as well. As for Emily Watson, much like Sophie, I feel she could have been portrayed by anyone like her. Even with everything in the film, there was actually one stand out performance that many people may disagree with me on. And that is Ben Schnetzer as Max as I thought he played up the role almost perfectly. Maybe it was just his character that caught me, but I must say that I am surprised that he is not in more stuff, though because of this film, I am almost certain he will get more jobs as his career strives forward. Hopefully. 

Still of Emily Watson, Sophie Nelisse and
Nico Liersch

Overall, I found The Book Thief to be heart warming, heart breaking, funny, interesting and just overall a great movie. With great acting, music and an near endless amount of quotes, this film is more than worth a good watch. 

OVERALL: 7.910

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014) Movie Review

JACK RYAN: SHADOW RECRUIT (2014) MOVIE REVIEW

I've got to admit. Even for a Tom Clancy film, this is down right generic. But that doesn't mean it's bad right? 

After he recovers from a fatal war injury, Jack Ryan (Chris Pine) is approached by Thomas Harper (Kevin Costner) who offers him a chance to get back in the game. Eagerly accepting his offer, Jack is officially deemed as being a CIA analyst, though when things get out of hand fast, Jack is forced to work the front lines as a full-blown CIA agent. Now a full agent, Jack must stop a potential threat in the form of Viktor Cherevin (Kenneth Branagh). Now let's address the elephant in the room, yes this does sound extremely cliché. And while it is clearly apparent, that does not mean the premise is terrible. In fact, towards the end of the plot, I was genuinely surprised by the turn it went and although the turn may have been a disappointment to me, it was still a shock nonetheless. Overall the plot, while generic, was good enough to keep the film on it's feet through the entire runtime...well..almost. 

 Still of Chris Pine and Kevin Costner(left to right)

Now that that's done, let's get back onto the generic formula of the film. Bad guys are doing stuff to America, America has to go over there and take them down from the inside. While this formula has been done to death about 1000 times before, you know the old saying. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. And that's one of the reasons behind this films quality is the fact that it's more or less impossible to screw up. Too be completely honest, if this film had of been god awful, I would have called this a terrible and disgrace of a movie. Though if it was a different kind of film, like for example, a romantic comedy, I would say it's the same stuff we have seen. This means because of the simple fact that this kind of film has been done with different actors and a different director, I can't say anything negative regarding the film. However, one negative I can say about the film is the fact that at the start of the film, it begins picking up which obviously is a good thing. And then suddenly, in the middle of the film, it suddenly decreases in intensity and becomes an incredibly boring "action" film. While this didn't stick with the film all the way to the end, I can easily say that the parts when it was boring were my least liked parts of the film. However, these boring parts were made watch-able due to the wide variety of performances given throughout the movie.

Still of Keira Knightley and Kenneth Branagh
(left to right)

As for the acting, I felt it was the biggest thing this film had going for it. If it wasn't for the performances given, I would have said they were simply generic and bad. Let us start with our main protagonist in the film, Chris Pine and too be honest, I found him the least interesting and the most generic out of them all. For a character that almost dies is more or less paralysed for a long period of time, it would make sense to make him the most interesting. Though thankfully, this character is made up by the next two actors, Kenneth Branagh and Kevin Costner. As for Branagh, I felt he played his part up spectacularly. Since he is actually the director of the film, it does make sense for his character in particular to be the most interesting, which he is. This guy is the kind of character that shows intimidation and utter anger in a very sophisticated and classy way, which I always like in an antagonist. As for Costner's character, I felt he was particularly interesting as the plot doesn't give you any background behind him besides his ranking in the CIA. Though the main reason I loved this character was because of Costner's performance as although people may disagree with me, but I believe Kevin Costner is still one of the best actors in Hollywood. Every role he puts himself into he brings such realism and charisma to just makes it a pleasure to watch him on screen. As for Keira Knightley's character.....I mean...she was just generic and could have been replaced by anyone, so moving on. Overall, the performances given were strong and managed to surpass other movie's like it.

Still of Kevin Costner lining up his shot

Overall, I'm not sure what else I can say. This film while good, was just so generic and sometimes a little too complicated. However, since I can't go against my own quote, I have to say that this film is actually worth watching. Even though you've probably seen it in a different form. 

OVERALL: 7.0/10

Scary Movie V, Movie 43 and The Big Wedding (2013) Movie Reviews

SCARY MOVIE V, MOVIE 43 AND THE BIG WEDDING (2013) MOVIE REVIEWS

Now these reviews were originally going to come out when the films got released but due to time restraints, I had completely forgot to review them. Now, in 2014, I am finally going to review these three awful, awful movies. 

Firstly, I shall review Scary Movie V, which to be honest, isn't that hard to describe. I mean, it's Scary Movie V. How this series has gotten to it's fifth theatrical release nonetheless, I have no idea. Anyhow, if you for some reason care, the film revolves around a couple named Jody (Ashley Tisdale) and Dan Sanders (Simon Rex) as they move into a new home, but after a few days, they start to notice paranormal stuff is occurring within the walls and from there, just everything stupid you could imagine happens. As if the whole premise behind a paranormal activity spoof wasn't bad enough, they also manage to ruin other phenomenal films like Evil Dead, Rise of the Planet of the Apes and even Inception. As far as the comedy goes, it is just the same crap over and over and over again. Seriously, it seems like every single joke in this film has to revolve around farting and shitting in some way, shape or form. Speaking of utter shit, the acting is just as bad as the jokes as when the main actress in the movie is supposed to be Ashley Tisdale, you know you have extremely big problems. While other actresses like Vanessa Hudgens seem to be moving forward, it seems that she is...well..left in their minor success. Seriously, when you're doing worse then people that have only been in one or two theatrical films, the troubles are already laid out right in front of you. Anyhow, to conclude, Scary Movie V is exactly what you would expect it to be, a terrible movie with crap acting and humour.

Still of Charlie Sheen and Lindsey Lohan

Next we come to Movie 43, a film that I actually thought would be one of my favourite comedies of the year. How wrong I was, how wrong I was. One of the things I was interested in about Movie 43 was the fact that it was a sketch comedy film, and with sketch comedy being one of my favourite forms of comedy, I thought it would be hilarious. And considering the line up of actors the film had, I could only assume that the movie was going to be one of my favourites in 2013. Never thought it would be one of my most hated from last year. One of the many reasons I think I hated this movie was because of the fact that since YouTube is mostly sketch comedy, it had me thinking "Why did I pay to see this?" I mean, I could have watched way, way funnier sketch comedy on a free website rather than pay around $20 to watch mediocre comedy. Another reason why I hated this film was because of the actors, it's not that they were bad, it's the fact that these actors were more or less forced to perform terribly ad unfortunately, amongst the actor line-up, it held some of my favourites including Chris Pratt, Stephen Merchant, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and many more. It also seems like everyone in the film doesn't look like they are having any kind of fun whatsoever. It's as if they are just waiting for their heavy paycheck. Overall, even the actors couldn't put in the effort to pretend that Movie 43 was a good movie. And thank god they didn't, because this film just frustrated me from start to finish. This should have been one of my favourites of the year, but somehow, it managed to screw it up, royally. 

Still of Terrence Howard in the final and funniest
sketch in the film

Now we come to the final film in our tri-factor of crap, The Big Wedding. Now I'm going to be honest, much like Scary Movie V, I didn't expect great things from this film. Though what I was expecting was something much better than what I got. The film revolves around a divorced couple who must fake they are together as their parents come to town for, you guessed it, the big wedding. Already the plot as many problems, one being why spend all this money on a fake wedding, just tell the parents and be done with it. Secondly, if you have been divorced for an extended amount of time, why wouldn't you have told your parents ages ago about this sudden split. As if this wasn't bad enough, the acting was just terrible in this film and even with comedic actors like Robert De Niro and Robin Williams in this film, they couldn't even save the film from its inevitable demise. Which is that it will be always be known as the film that never happened. Literally, this film was one of the worst films box office wise as it made barely any money, and managed to be one of the biggest bombs all year. Anyhow, the humour in the film is just as bad as the acting and the film actually did suffer from its advertising as it managed to show the funniest moments in the trailers, which to be honest, weren't all that funny to begin. Overall, The Big Wedding was a film that I just had too high of expectations for, even though I didn't have any to begin with. Real shame to, I wanted to like this film. 

Still of Robert De Niro and Diane Keaton

SCARY MOVIE V: 2.3

MOVIE 43: 3.7

THE BIG WEDDING: 3.3

Enough Said (2013) Movie Review

ENOUGH SAID (2013) MOVIE REVIEW

Just saying, but it is really, really weird to see a man like James Gandolfini in a romantic comedy. Just wouldn't expect it. 

After she divorces her husband, Eva (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) begins searching for a new man in her life at a friend's party. Here, she unexpectedly begins falling for a slightly overweight man named Albert (James Gandolfini). After they begin to hit it off, she soon learns more about her new lover through her new client and friend, Marianne (Catherine Keener). Unfortunately, she begins to wonder which is more important, her new love or new friend after she finds out that this new friend of hers is actually Albert's ex-wife. From the get go, the story seems like your typical romantic comedy problem though in this film, I felt that they handled it very well. This is because of the fact that no one knows what is going on, including Eva as she literally has no idea what to do with this new found information. Though on the flip-side, she uses this to her advantage by finding out problems as to why Marianne left him in the first place, this includes minor annoyances and nitpicks that ultimately led to the separation. Overall, the story I felt was really strong and although I knew what was going to inevitably happen, I had to idea what would lead to the inevitable. 

Still of James Gandolfini and Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Without a doubt the thing that made me keep on enjoying this movie right until the end were the characters that were created. Every character, whether it be James Gandolfini's loveable, misunderstood lover to Ben Falcone's doormat of a husband , every single character were funny in their own, unique way. Some of the stand out characters to me in the film include James Gandolfini's and Ben Falcone's as I mentioned earlier. One of the reasons I enjoyed these two was because they were more or less the two characters that were created to basically connect with the male demographic that see this film. And I must say, I immediately connected with both these characters as both brought some sort of humour to the already hilarious dialogue. Others that I enjoyed include Tracey Fairaway's performance as a daughter who is leaving for college, one of the reasons this character was funny to me was the fact that since she is leaving so soon, you can see where she is coming from when she asks her mother, Eva, for a little more recognition. Speaking of, another character that was just hilarious was Tavi Gevison as the daughter's best friend Chloe. I think the reason behind my enjoyment for this character is the fact that she herself is being pushed away from her mother, resulting in her continually hanging out with Eva, which causes the daughter to become a tiny bit frustrated though in the end, you can tell that she is just angry in that kind of laughable way, the kind of emotion that would come from your best friend hanging out with your mum more then you. 

Still of Tracey Fairaway and Julia Louis-Dreyfus

As for the acting, this is where the film managed to completely surprise me as I thought that the performances in the film were really good. Julia Louis-Dreyfus was a good choice for this specific role as she plays the kind of person that is regularly nice, though only becomes angry when pushed over the absolute edge, which only occurs once in the entire film. James Gandolfini man...he was just...wow in this film. He played up the misunderstood lover role almost perfectly and in my opinion was the best actor/actress among the cast. Since this is his last performance, I was expecting something but I didn't think I would get a performance like that, which is all the worse reason that he has passed. Anyhow, others who were good in the film include Toni Collette as Eva's best friend as I felt she brought that kind of Toni Collette performance to the table as she really does play up that off the rails lover well, which she also showed in the severely underrated film The Way Way Back. Lastly, one actor in particular that I fell should have been featured in the movie more is Toni Colette's lover in the film, Ben Falcone as Will as I felt he brought a kind of comic relief performance that is rare to see performed so real in romantic comedies in particular. While I feel they missed out by not putting Falcone in more scenes, I must say that the acting was incredibly strong by everyone in their respective roles. 

Still of Toni Colette, Ben Falcone and Julia
Louis-Dreyfus

Overall, I felt that Enough Said is easily one of the most underrated movies of the year. Bringing heart-warming performances, a hilarious script and good chemistry between James and Julia, it is an honour to call this movie James Gandolfini's last. Rest in Peace James. 

OVERALL: 7.6/10

Philomena (2013) Movie Review

PHILOMENA (2013) MOVIE REVIEW

Before going into this film, I was actually extremely worried about seeing it as from what I had seen from it, it didn't look like my kind of film. How wrong I was...how wrong I was. 

Based on the true story of Philomena (Judi Dench), the self-titled film follows the of a world-weary political journalist named Martin Sixsmith (Steve Coogan) as he picks up a story based around Philomena who for her whole life, has attempted to find her son after he was taken away form her years ago after she fell pregnant and had to live in a convent. Easily the strongest aspect that the story has going for it is that all the events that occurred in the film actually did happen, which immediately makes the audience sympathize with Philomena as she and Martin begin their search. Another thing that I really enjoyed about the story was that towards the end, when everything begins going down, it really does show how angry both Martin and Philomena are. This moment of intensity really did show how angry these two were and just so I can let you watch it yourself, I shant explain why they are filled with rage. Anyhow, one of the things that was going against the film was that the trailers showed too much. I felt that the film told you who the son becomes and immediately tells you where they will go and where they end up, which is a shame as that should be what the film is about. Slowly piecing it together and finding out where her son has ended up. Anyhow, I felt that the film obviously had a strong story, and just to clarify, I would be saying this no matter whether it was a true story or not. 

Still of Steve Coogan and Judi Dench

Considering that this film has to rely mostly on each actor's performance, you would have to have great expectations for everyone's performances. Thankfully, each actor I felt did a fantastic job in their respective roles. Judi Dench was an impeccable choice to play Philomena as I felt she has that loveable old person personality, though can show stone cold emotion when required to. As for Steve Coogan, I actually thought he did as good or even better job then Judi. I felt that he provided alot of the laughs throughout this comedic drama and had me really believe that he wanted to help Philomena find her son. However, Steve was unfortunately shunned at all the award shows this year which is quite peculiar as I felt he did an amazing job as a supporting actor, and should have at least got a nomination. Anyhow, another woman that I felt did a really good job is a woman by the name of Sophie Kennedy Clark as a young Philomena. Known only for this film and a minor, minor role in the forgettable film Dark Shadows, she was only in the film for about 10 minutes at the beginning to explain the back story and I felt that she brought something special to the performance. This is especially noticeable in the scene where her son is being taken away. Here, she manages to express an incredible amount of emotion that managed to almost make me tear up as I honestly felt like that she had lost her son forever. And considering that she is more or less a new actor in Hollywood, I can guarantee you that you will be seeing her face in many different movies later in life. Overall, the acting from more or less the main three people in the film was incredibly strong and managed to begin a career, or at least improve one. 

Still of Sophie Kennedy Clark as a young Philomena

To be honest, I'm not really sure what else I can say about this film other then the fact it has incredible acting, superb chemistry between Steve and Judi and that it more than deserves to win an Oscar for Best Actress, though maybe not Best Picture. Though that would be fantastic.

OVERALL: 8.0/10

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013) Movie Review

ANCHORMAN 2: THE LEGEND CONTINUES (2013) MOVIE REVIEW

After the surprising success that the original Anchorman had, it was almost inevitable that a sequel was going to be made. And boy am I glad that it did. 

After being his entire news team was fired from his news channel, Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) begins working as a trainer for Sea World. Unsurprisingly, he gets fired from this occupation as well and gets approached by a man named Freddie Shapp (Dylan Baker) who offers Ron a chance at redemption as a newscaster for a 24-hour news channel. Reluctantly agreeing, Ron decides to "get the band back together" to begin their new careers. To be completely honest, I thought that this movie was going to be completely blind in terms of its story as it seemed from the trailers to be just a funny movie, one that doesn't concentrate at all on its overbearing plot. However, much like the previous film, I felt that the writers actually did put some thought into the plot as at the beginning, it starts in a very simple style though towards the final act of the story, alot of stuff begins occurring. Now usually, this would make the film too overcrowded however in this particular instance, it somehow works perfectly as by the time the end credits are rolling, you leave feeling that they actually told a complete and ridiculous. So to be honest, I must say that the film had a really intriguing and just hilarious story and really did play its cards at the right times and did it flawlessly. 

Still of Paul Rudd, Will Ferrell, David Koechner
and Steve Carell

Now since this film is, of course, a comedy, I more or less must judge the movie on its overall hilarity factor. And I must say, I thought this movie was absolutely hilarious. Almost every single scene in this movie, whether it had an overlaying joke or just a simple one liner, made me literally laugh out loud. Most of this comedy of course comes from the four leading men in the movie, who were all hilarious in their own way. Whether it be Ron Burgundy's pride, Brian Fantana's (Paul Rudd) obsession with sex, Brick Tamland's (Steve Carell) way of being...well..Brick or a new character in the series, Jack Lime's (James Marsden) cockiness, I felt that each actor brought something new to either the movie or their character's personality. Now one of the things I despise most about comedy in general is the overuse of toilet humour and jokes literally about someone farting or shitting. Luckily, while watching this movie, it seemed that the film could still be funny without the use of the human feces, which I found extremely impressive. Not that I'm saying that toilet humour is a good thing, because it never is, but it's rare to see a mainstream film like this be successful without making reference to farts or feces. Speaking of shit, let's discuss some of the things that I did not enjoy about the film. Like any movie, there are minor problems that cannot be simply fixed like lack of ideas or certain angles, but there is one problem that seemed to not really bother, but rather stick out to me as being the only problem with the film. And that is that the film seemed a little unfocused at times as Jack Lime is supposed to be the main antagonist in the film, though he is only there for the first half, then he just kind of disappears for a while then for a tiny bit pops up at the finale of the film, which bothered me because I really liked that character as he seemed to be Ron's polar opposite in terms of personality. 

Still of James Marsden and his news team

As for the acting, I felt that the film had an extremely strong comedy ensemble much like the last film. With Will Ferrell once again bringing his iconic Ron Burgundy to life again, it is hilarious to see what antics he gets himself into and his very passive aggressive style of acting. Though Will Ferrell is the main star, I felt that the stand out in the four was actually Paul Rudd as I felt that he brought an extreme amount of charisma that, at least for me, was missing from the previous film. In this instalment, he is a drug and sex addicted man who somehow manages to compile a list of the Top 40 Best Vaginas in the Last Decade. This is but one example that proves why he is my favourite in the group. Well that and Paul Rudd is one of my favourite comedians but that's beyond the point. David Koechner as Champ Kind I felt, while hilarious, was the weakest of the four. And to be honest, that isn't a bad thing as when you're up against actors like Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd and Steve Carell, it's incredibly hard to stand out. Speaking of Steve Carell, I felt that his iconic character was brought justice once again as just everything he says makes me laugh, and even when Steve laughs, it just makes me laugh for some strange reason. Maybe it's just that stupid face he makes that triggers me to laugh, I'm not entirely sure but he was hilarious nonetheless. Others who were good in the film include James Marsden, Christina Applegate as Veronica Corningstone and although he was only in it for a short amount of time, Harrison Ford as Mack Tannen. Overall, I felt that the acting was really good and once again showcased these actor's hilarious talent.

Still of Christina Applegate, Meagan Good and
Will Ferrell

Overall, while some people may disagree with me, I felt that Anchorman 2 was better than its predecessor and is easily one of the best comedies of the year. With a hilarious script, impeccable performances and an ending that out-dos the firsts in every way, Anchorman 2 can be described in one simple word, surprising. 

OVERALL: 8.2/10