insideaway
http://www.flixster.com/user/insideaway
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| Movie: | 300, V for Vendetta, Boondock Saints, The Crow |
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| Actor: | Cillian Murphy |
| Director: | Tim Burton, Quentin Tarantino, David Cronenberg |
| Quote: |
| Elitist prig with an attitude problem. Please bear in mind that I will automatically dislike you if you haven't even the basic grasp of spelling and grammar. |
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Siarra's Recent Reviews
The Mist
R
A solid B movie and a pleasant surprise for a King movie. Unfortunately the CGI is very dodgy and dated, and what was a chilling and hopeless ambience in the books has been turned into cheap psychologica horror that doesn't do a thing for the already jaded and cynical in the audience. Although some of the scenes have been completey nixed and cleaned up, it follows the book pretty well. Unfortunately the pastede on yay! ending, while providing great existential angst and encouraging some hammy midnight philosophy, goes against some of the most heavily carried elements in King's books.
Speed Racer
PG
If you can get past the bright neon and shiny candy-coated colours violent enough to give Las Vegas epilepsy and how plastic everything looks (including the botox-ed actresses), it turns out that is the average, painfully predictable by the numbers affair of a family film. Oddly enough, it feels like something you might dream up after spending the day playing karting video games and then watching Charlie and the Chocolate Factory before going to bed.
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
PG-13
Apparently the lack of Johnny Depp makes it okay to hate sequels again when it comes to brainless summer flicks. Admittedly, this follows in the footsteps of true Hollywood, everything is bigger and shinier and there's much more of it, but at least it doesn't have a whiny Mary Sue doing the job of three Optimus Primes. The special effects are gorgeous and the film is stil pretty entertaining and accessible even for te non-fans viewers. Although a lot of the humour takes refuge in audacity, there's lot of it and it makes a good counter point to the now much more realistic battle scenes where people actually get killed and genuine chaos abounds. Most of the new characters are pretty useless and anti-climactic, and the plot has mistakes and holes aplenty, this does rather prove that no matter how much the fans love it, this is a niche thing and doesn't translate all that well to a live action movie.
The Incredible Hulk
PG-13
Better than Ang Lee's version, although that's not saying much. Jarringly repetitive, annoyingly type cast (Norton doing his kicked puppy thing, Tyler being a pretty and ever so weepy token love interest...), the only good parts about this movie are the much improved, nifty special effects and Roth's character who shows the most development of them all.
Siarra's Favorite Movies
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5.
Eastern Promises
R
You pretty much have to be a fan of this sort of thing to find this anything but boring and unnecessarily brutal, but this a very impressive film throughout. The dedication the makers have shown is awesome, all the way from the tattoos to the accents. The story is a very interesting one, alternating between the regular people -point of view and the ethics of the criminal world. The ending isn't really the strongest pint, but getting there, and the subtext is certainly interesting. ...and damn if Viggo still isn't looking damn fine.
6.
The Dark Knight
PG-13
The series is finally getting to the dark and gruesome level the comic book fans have been expecting for far too long now, and the end result is a seductive mix of genuine madmen, real evil, moral choices, gloriouos violence and gratuitous explosions. Although the handling of Two-Face is pretty much sub-par, Ledger pulled out all the stops and his performance as the Joker will be rememberd and is worth remembering as great even long after the hype has dwindled away.
Siarra's Movie Scrapbook
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Siarra's Talk
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I recommend you see...
Once Upon a Time in the West
by xGaryposted 4 days ago -
I recommend you see...
Key Largo
by xGaryA ruthless mobster and his gang hold a group of hotel guests hostage during a hurricane on the Florida Keys. Another Noir from John (The Maltese Falcon) Huston featuring the classic pairing of Bogart and Bacall, this film does not quite live up to the promise of these ingredients, but that's a hell of a pedigree to live up to. Making Bogart a do-gooder war hero and Bacall a doting widow takes the edge off their usual cynical, hard-bitten sparring and this overly wholesome approach means that the crackling chemistry they have shown in their other films is compromised. Robinson and Claire Trevor as his soused moll provide the best moments, and his sneering diatribes against Bogie's moral stand are great. The hurricane enclosed setting makes for a nice pressure cooker environment in which the protagonists show their true colours and puts an interesting spin on the usual Noir ingredients. Maybe not the most original or inventive examples of the genre and it misses the firecracker dialogue of the likes of The Maltese Falcon, but it is still effective, atmospheric and constantly entertaining.
Not quite as good as The Big Sleep or The Maltese Falcon, but still great.
posted 14 days ago -
I recommend you see...
On the Waterfront
by xGaryA longshoreman and ex-boxer has a crisis of conscience when the gangsters who control the union murder a fellow dock worker. On The Waterfront is one of those films that is almost famous for being famous. Nearly everyone can recite Brando's most quoted line, but this infamy means its reputation precedes it which can obscure just how good a film is. And this is not just a good film, it's an incredible one. Brando's powerhouse performance has also overshadowed those of the other members of the cast, but Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger and Eva Marie Saint are all worth far more than just an honourable mention, and the classic "I coulda been a contender"scene is just one amongst many memorable and powerful moments; Karl Malden's speech that provokes Terry's change of heart, the discovery of his brother, the confession to Edie in the boatyard...the list goes on. Examinig many themes in a multi-layered story of corruption, redemption and one man standing up for what is right, On The Waterfront is one of the true greats of American cinema.
One of those films a true cinema lover just HAS to see.
posted 17 days ago -
I recommend you see...
Wanted
by xGaryA downtrodden working stiff who wishes he had more from life discovers one day that he is a super-powered assassin who can bend the laws of physics. Hmmm...I'm pretty sure I've heard this somewhere before. Not to mention the "phew it was only a dream...oh wait, no it wasn't!" scene and the beautiful stranger who becomes his personal Yoda. But as derivative the story is (I'm pretty sure the blame for that can be laid at the door of the graphic novel, as can the ludicrous "loom of fate" idea) it's actually really well executed. It has just the right mix of tongue in cheek humour, slick visuals and outrageous stunts, and McAvoy works as both nerdish nobody and action hero. Jolie also brings the right mix of edginess and exotic beauty and Freeman does what he does best. The predictable plot is as ever the weak point and the character interaction rather limited, but at least it tries to throw in some interesting twists and the breathless pace keeps boredom well and truly at bay. In the end this is an unoriginal but exciting and fun superhero movie and one of the better Hollywood blockbusters of recent years.
It's no Matrix but I'd take it over the sequels any day.
posted 25 days ago -
I recommend you see...
The Big Sleep
by xGaryPrivate eye Philip Marlowe is hired to investigate the blackmail of a young heiress but when the corpses start to pile up, he realises that the case has more than meets the eye. I love Film Noir, and Bogart for me is the best of its leading men. Bogart and Bacall have one of the greatest screen partnerships and Chandler was one of the best exponents of the art of the detective story. The plot has more twists and turns than a sidewinder that's swallowed a corkscrew, it involves a femme fatale who could melt a polar ice cap and dialogue that's more hard boiled than beelzebub's breakfast egg. It just doesn't get any better than this. The greatest Noir ever made.
Sorry about the colourful metaphors, but I LOVE this film!
posted 44 days ago -
I recommend you see...
Pursued
by xGaryRobert Mitchum plays a rancher who has been stalked since childhood by a one armed man with a grudge, without ever knowing why.The themes of twisted psychology, sibling rivalry, jealousy and revenge presented by shadow steeped photography and narrated by Mitchum who is on top form as the hapless anti-hero who is unwillingly forced to kill by circumstances beyond his control all point to the same thing; I don't care how many stetsons or six guns are on show, this IS Film Noir. The intelligent character driven plot is all very Freudian, which makes for a very unusual hybrid of genres. It looks fantastic and has a solid supporting cast, the pick of which is Judith Anderson as the matriarch whose guilty secret lies at the core of the events Mitchum finds himself caught up in. I'd never heard of this one before, and I'm glad I stumbled upon it. If you like Noir, westerns, or classic film in general, it's worth hunting down a copy.
Film Noir on horseback. And it works!
posted 47 days ago -
I recommend you see...
Vertigo
by xGaryAn emotionally shattered ex-detective becomes obsessed with a young woman who resembles the love he failed to prevent from committing suicide in one of Alfred Hitchcock's great psychological thrillers. James Stewart gives one of his most intense performances as the disturbed acrophobic, and although not really known for her thespian skills, the lovely Kim Novak is actually very convincing in her dual roles as haunted heiress and stalkee. It's one of Hitch's most visually creative films with some very clever and subtle visual tricks and uses of shadow and lighting complimented by a wonderfully other-worldly soundtrack. Mixing elements of psychology, obsession, the supernatural and an extremely clever noir-style plot this is a unique film and one of the true classics. The climax is unforgettable.
One of THE classics.
posted 59 days ago -
I recommend you see...
Jackie Brown
by xGaryAging flight attendant Pam Grier is caught between the police and ruthless gun runner Samuel L. Jackson and enlists the help of bail bondsman Robert Forster to scam half a million dollars in the process. Jackie Brown was met with a level of disappointment when it was released; yes it had the cool ensemble cast, excellent retro soundtrack and prolific use of the "N" word, but where were the violence, idiosyncratic characters and quirky comic dialogue we were all expecting? But the fact is, Jackie Brown is by far the most mature film Tarantino has made so far. The dialogue is more naturalistic, the characters believable and well written, and the statuesque queen of blaxploitation, Pam Grier proves that the years have in no way diminished her charisma and sex appeal. She gives a sensitive, layered performance of a woman who is full of confidence on the surface, masking an underlying fear of a wasted life; her relationship with Forster is full of warmth and sincerity rather than the contrived romantic bullshit you find in most Hollywood thrillers. Jackson is also fantastic as the cold as ice killer, and they spark off each other brilliantly. This film is easily Tarantino's most low key and mainstream, but this most definitely is not a bad thing and deserves to be revisited by anyone who felt that disappointment the first time around.
An under-rated gem.
posted 60 days ago
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