My Favorite Movies

Very very clever look at the film director.

So hilarious! Jules and Vince are a hilarious combo. Tarantino did extremely well here. The dialogue is simply ingenious.

Heart-warming and completely gorgeous. I love this film.

This film is minimalistic in elements. It's a very simple story-line, there is practically no music and no dialogue. It's raw power is so enthralling and thrilling that it doesn't need any excess. Javier Bardem is unbelievably amazing.

One of the best true-story films ever made, this film is hauntingly beautful. The more you mull on the story, the more beautiful you realise it is, in a scary way. Kate Winslet shone in this film, and PJ showed that he is AMAZING!

The best of the original series, and only beaten by 'Sith' by an inch in my opinion. THe story-line was perfect and the action sequences; amazing! All the actors were also brilliant, especially Ford as Han Solo!

Absolute brilliance! Austen's wit shines through, and is accompanied by great acting, great music and great mise-en-scene. Loved it!

Delightful film. Johnny Depp at his best. There is very little negative criticism that I can give this film. All the elements of the film blended together beautifully.

Great music, great visuals, there's not much wrong with this film.

Great music, great Julie Andrews, but it dragged A LOT near the end.

Beautiful artistic direction, great music, costumes, acting. Really, it's just all AMAZING! One of the best foreign films I've ever seen.

Beautiful film. Loved Osment and Law. It's such a moving story, but probably ran for too long. However, the final scenes with his mother are completely gorgeous.

Genius and Clever

Fantastic acting by Penn, Pfeiffer and Fanning. A really great and inspirational story. People say it's drenched in sweetness. Well it is, but I don't see this as a bad thing. It may be a slight bit unrealistic, but it has such a hopeful message, and gives people awareness of mentally disabled people. And I love the idea that despite Sam's intellectual disability, he is arguably a better parent than anyone else.

This film was so unbelievably powerful. I am completely moved by the experience of watching it. The film gave such an amazing insight into Maori culture, that the tragedy and wavering hope in the story had me in tears. NZ filmmaking at it's best.

A fantastic sci-fi epic action movie, that despite it all, has a heart. Unlike The Dark Knight, this film lived up to it's huge media hype.

A very, very remarkable film. Guillermo Del Toro is absolutely brilliant. This story is interwined with so much symbolism, it's hard to keep up. It's so difficult to decipher this film, but somehow you understand the message inside your heart, though it's impossible to put it into words. I wouldn't call this film a horror or a thriller. The gore is realistic, and adds a certain sense to film that could not be achieved any other way. The ghost of Santi is beautiful, not horrific.

The story is a little corny, and the acting can be occassionally bad, but the creativity behind this film is phenomenal. All the design that went into it is extraordinary- a visual feast! Even though I felt the plot moved along slowly, and some of the puppet characters were frustrating, I still stuck with the film, and wanted more than anything for Sarah to succeed. Jareth's character was awesome. His scenes were strangely romantic, which I enjoyed. The ballroom scene stayed in my mind for quite some time, because of it's beautiful potency.

Phenomenal movie. Great themes, great story, and Clint Eastwood was GREAT. I absolutely love the character of Walt, and I think Clint Eastwood pulled him off perfectly. The child actors were however somewhat of a let down.

The ending was absolutely beautiful. The unexpected sacrifice of Walt shocked and amazed me, and had me in tears. Absolutely moving.

A mish-mash of action, gore, violence, science fiction, drama, adventure and at times comedy. District 9 was beyond my wildest imaginings.

The sheer creativity of this film blew me away. It seemed to mix several different elements that have been explored before in other films; the hand-held camera work of 'Cloverfield', the laughable gore of Peter Jackon's early films, the simple and wholesome storyline of most space operas, the mockumentary style, the presentation of media propaganda like 'V for Vendetta', the alien-infection horror and so much more. All these elements together were phenomenal.

What I found incredibly creative was how the audience had a somewhat omniscient view because of the many camera styles that were used. There was the typical camera where the characters are not aware of the audience. There was also a hand-held documentary style camera where the characters were talking directly to you. Also the interview-style camera provided a simple un-overwhelming wealth of information in the opening. Along with that, there were the news reports and security cameras, which gave the public view of the situation, as well as sneaky looks at what no one else could see.

Visually, the film was fantastic. Not only was the design of the aliens amazing, their dismal setting, their weaponry and their technology were all spectacular. The weaponry in particular was phenomenal. I had my mouth hanging open for several of the sudden shoot-outs where the power of each weapon was so unbelievably different to anything that I'd ever seen before. It was so awesome that everyone was compelled to just drop their jaw and whisper 'WOW!'. The armoured suit that Wickus wears looked great and had the most amazingly creative weaponry. Unlike 'Transformers', we were given a good look at it, rather than it being just a blur of metal. (I could see Greg Broadmore's design style all over it, and I loved it.)

The setting in Johannesburg was quite clever. It was good to see a shift away from the usual American-invasion story. Also, Blomkamp utilised the South African atmosphere not only to create interesting factions in the plot, but to also parallel some of the implicit racial difficulties in the country. He utilised certain African culture to add an extra dimension to the story.

The dialogue for the most part was well done, and I thought Sharlto Copley did extraordinarily well. I believe Blomkamp has found a new star in Copley. He played his part with conviction, and we were able to endear his character.

The sound mixing was also very well done and kept the film moving in an accelerating state of action- particularly with the sound of news reports often drifting in as well as the sci-fi explosion sounds. The plot was moving forward at a remarkable pace the whole time, and every explosion would make you jump so you were never bored.

There are a few unexplained phenomena in the plot concerned with the aliens, but I think that by not addressing them, Blomkamp leaves the audience to speculate. It feels more like a real situation because not everything is explained, for such is our little understanding. Although the news reports tried to imply that the humans knew everything about the 'prawns', our omniscient view and our questioning of certain things (like the nature of the fluid) put in our minds that the humans were not aware of the full potential of the aliens.

The battle sequences and explosions were all brilliantly handled. This isn't surprising since Jackson was probably involved, and he is always a genius at presenting fight sequences. They were neither disorientating or confusing in any sense, unlike most other flicks that involve a lot of extreme fighting.

Overall, a very remarkable film which was very entertaining. A huge round of applause for Neill Blomkamp and Peter Jackson. Though somewhat low-brow with it's excess of gore, this film actually makes us scorn humans and pity the aliens. That is it's power- District 9 makes us question who the real monsters are.

Quite unlike anything I've ever seen before. I think Meet the Feebles may still be the only film featuring only puppets. Though it was somewhat distasteful at times, Peter Jackson knew where to draw the line between witty parody and a plainly bad movie.

The musical numbers in this film were surprisingly catchy and enjoyable. Although most of the singing voices weren't great, it was excusable as their voices matched their characters.

The costumes and set in this film are quite amazing. I believe almost all of it was shot in a small make-shift studio, and I think Peter Jackson did very well with what he had. The puppets were impressive - good job Weta Workshop. Though the puppets weren't as finely created as Henson puppets, their sheer size and movemnt showed a commendable effort.

The characters in the film were all great. Jackson presented an excellent parody of society that was often so extreme that it was laughable. Although many consider the movie to be 'sick', with every grotesque moment there is a laugh. You can't be horrified, you can't be disgusted, you can only laugh at these puppets and their ridiculous antics.

Overall, an enjoyable film that shows off Peter Jackson's genius from an early stage. Clearly, a lot of effort went into making this film, and I believe he has created a cult classic that will provide entertainment for many years to come.

This film is absolutely brilliant, and I give it 5 stars, not just because it's a Peter Jackson (and I'm an insane PJ fan), but because I don't believe I've ever been so moved by a piece of filmmaking.

Alice Sebold's novel is a powerful one, with a difficult structure to put into a film. Jackson has adapted her book brilliantly, keeping the essence of it central in his filmmaking. The parts of the beloved book that were changed, were changed justifiably for the sake of an entertaining film. It's unfortunate that the film couldn't be longer, because a lot of the development that occurs in the book had to be cut out. Many characters did not get much screen-time. However, Jackson knew what he was doing in utilising the screen time, and he portrayed the most powerful movie he could with it. A major event that was changed was the rape of Susie, and Mr Harvey's other victims. Jackson chose to dodge this, although he implied that the victims were raped. In a sense, the film was not as 'unflinching' as the novel in terms of some of the more negative events, but this was made up by the unflinching and very moving portrayal of the effects of Susie's death.

The structure of the film is somewhat odd, because of course, the climax happens at almost the beginning of the film. The rest of the film holds the tension high, and even at the end, I did not feel that there was a resolution to the distress of the characters. I suppose this portrays the emotions after the death of a loved one- solace is difficult and takes time beyond the frame of the film. Jackson and Walsh did well in portraying this through the screenplay.

The most impressive aspect of the film would have to be it's cast. Saoirse Ronin played Susie Salmon absolutely convincingly, and her character was one who the audience could connect to, as we watched the Earth below with her and had her desires. Rachel Weisz and Mark Wahlberg played their grieving parts with conviction, and often I was moved by their characters' incapability to move on. Rose McIver is an excellent young new talent from NZ, likely to follow in the shoes of Melanie Lynsky that Jackson discovered for 'Heavenly Creatures.' She played Lindsay well, and was not outshone by her fellow actors. Though I usually dislike Susan Sarandon, I think she played her part well and without the extremity and exaggeration that she has been accused of. In a sense, she provided comic relief in a film full of tension, and her growth through the film was a beautiful subtlety - another effect of Susie's death. However, the most stellar performance was undoubtedly by Stanley Tucci. I was incredibly chilled and terrified by the man, and I'm certain that I will never see a man with a moustache, glasses and a comb-over without having the urge to turn and run. He was despicable and yet not overdone. He wasn't single-dimensioned, and I felt that it was possible to have compassion for him.

Visually, the film was brilliant. The 'inbetween' was not a showy depiction of Weta Digital's talent, but a creative way to portray a surreal world that it yet untouchable for us still living. I think Jackson did extremely well portraying the 'inbetween'. Rather than it being totally removed from the rest of the film, it had elements that kept Susie connected- showing her inablility to let go. It was done in a surrealist fashion and unrealistically, which I think is good. There is no way we could doubt that Susie was in a different world. Jackson was careful to portray that it was Susie's 'heaven'. Not everybody's. When we die, we can't guarantee that we'll be in Jackson's depiction of the afterlife.

The cinematography in this film was stunning, and it was enhanced even more by the editing. I noticed a lot of extreme close-up shots, which almost kept us suffocated by the impact of Susie's death. Particularly, close-ups of Stanley Tucci made me feel uncomfortable. I was stifled by him, and his terrifying character. The creative shots that Jackson used were incredible, and portrayed emotion, anger, violence, fear and hurry in an incredible way. The editing was top-notch, and Jackson clearly utilised his technique of cross-cutting to maximise tension. It made my heart beat, fast.

I was also thrilled by the excellent sound. Sound mixing, sound editing and music were put together in a way that enhanced the film all the more. The sound mixing was incredibly dramatic, and induced a huge amount of fear in me. At times the sound made me want to cower and scream, because it made the images so terrifying. Other times, it made me want to cry. I felt the emotions of the characters strongly largely through the music.

This film was overall, amazing. All the elements of filmmaking came together to portray an ultimately moving and affecting portrayal of death and it's effects. I was truly astounded by this film, and I don't believe I've teared up so many times during a movie. The raw power of emotion was so present, and the aura of joy, love, hate, discomfort, fear and solace will haunt me every time I think of this film. Peter Jackson has done it again. An excellent adaptation and a powerful piece of filmmaking.

SPOILER ALERT



WOW WOW WOW is all that I can say about Avatar. James Cameron has done it again, the film was just unbelievable! Despite the doubts that a lot of people had towards it, I thought it was absolutely brilliant, and I think you'd be foolhardy to disagree with me.

Firstly, the film was the greatest visual feast my eyes have ever experienced. I watched it in 3D, and though it took me a while to get used to a whole extra dimension on screen, by the end of the film when the action packed finale rolled out, my eyes were ready to take in the spectacle. Utterly beautiful, and the 3D only enhanced it. Amazing stuff by Weta Digital led by Joe Letteri.

The design for the film was phenomenal. The Na'vi, their weapons, their environment, the creatures, as well as the mecha, the technology and the AMP suits were designed exquisitely and quite unlike anything I've ever seen before. I was blown away by Neytiri's beauty, and everything about Pandora kept my eyes glued to the screen. Props to Richard Taylor's Weta Workshop and Cameron's team for the amazing design.

The story was a convention and predictable one, but all the more loveable for it. It was very much the same basic story as 'Pocahontas', but with an alien twist and set in a remarkable environment. However, Cameron did extremely well with aligning the audience with the Na'vi. Even if you are a 'man of industry', you'd be on the Na'vi's side. I think everyone would be tempted to punch the Colonel in the face. Whereas every Na'vi death was like a stab to my own heart, I smiled in triumph when a human was destroyed.

The film was cast well, with Sam Worthington making an excellent protagonist. Combined with the digital performance of all the Na'vi characters, the kick-ass attitude of the fellow heroes, and the sneering, hateful performances of the antagonists, the film worked brilliantly.

However, if I were to make one criticism of the film, it would be the dialogue. I found it to be poorly written at times, with some lines being cringe-worthy (and I did cringe). Considering Cameron wasn't using a particularly original plot, he ought to have come up with more original and interesting dialogue. However, much of the film lacks dialogue altogether, and that is in fact a relief- it gave the visuals more of a chance to shine.

Sound mixing was incredible. The roars of the beasts were convincing and terrifying, and truly brought the creatues to life. The sounds of the machinery was also well done, although anything to do with the 'antagonistic' side is nothing compared to the Na'vi in my mind. The music was also beautiful; exactly what we should expect from the likes of James Horner.

Cinematography was also brilliant, capturing fight sequences and sweeping vistas very well. It also accomodated the 3D, which only enhanced the experience. Editing was also good, building up to a strong climax and allowing enough time for a good story to develop without rushing, but also without dragging. Althought I felt it began a bit quickly, by the end, I understood why Cameron had chosen to rush to the parts involving the Na'vi.

Overall, this film was phenomenal, and I love it more by the second. Visually, it was such an impressive film, and the entire concept of the Na'vi race astounds and moves me. I see this as being a potential 'Star Wars'-esque grail. The basic moral of faith vs. industry was presented in a whole new way, and I can only praise James Cameron for this astounding masterpiece. It's not often that as an audience, you turn against characters of your own species, but Cameron has created such a powerful story that it makes you wish that we lived in a Na'vi society.