Attack the Block

The Synopsis
It's an alien invasion in a place we have yet to see, in a South London block of flats. The aliens have met their match with a bunch of teenage kids from London who will protect their block, no matter what it takes.

The review
Oh my days. Dude, you simply HAVE to see this movie. I know that a film has got me hooked when the next day it is all I can think about.

I saw the trailer for this film a while ago and thought immediately that I have to see this film. I didn't really know how I would take it though. But then the film came out and with it the reviews were outstanding. This peaked my interest as I couldn't see how such a bizarre and low-funded film could make that much of an impact, but then I saw it and now I know. It was immense.

Being a girl that lives in London, I immediately related to the characters. I am definitely not streetwise enough to ever pull off being anything like them but you can't go anywhere around this area without bumping into someone just like them. There's not many alien films where I can genuinely say, that was actually really realistic!! I'm not kidding, if aliens were to attack South London, that would totally be how it would pan out.

The film was fresh, new and simply awesome. The writing was perfect for it's setting and the main gang of kids totally stole the show.

One thing I wondered about prior to seeing the film was whether it would be nearly as good to anyone who doesn't live in London. After seeing it though, I really don't think it matters. The film was so well put together that an outsider might very well think it a little strange but by the end would be so wrapped up in it, it wouldn't matter.

All the main actors in the groups of boys were awesome but I need to take a moment to marvel at the genius that was one of them. His name is Alex Esmail and he played the character 'Pest.' I absolutely loved him. Almost everything that came out of his mouth was freakin hilarious and if he isn't immediately snapped up for another film then there is something seriously wrong with this world.

It was pure alien invasion science fiction classic with a new twist that was refreshing and very enjoyable. But overall, on top of absolutely everything else, it was FUNNY. Really really funny.

I really don't know what else to say except Nick Frost was his normal awesome self throughout and the Writer and Director Joe Cornish is officially my favourite person this month.

GO AND SEE IT AND THEN TELL YOUR FRIENDS TO DO THE SAME. I've officially roped everyone I came into contact with at work today to make it their priority, now I'm doing the same to you.

That is all. No review can do it justice, it needs to be experienced to fully understand. I'm already making plans to see it again.

An unsurprising 5 faces from me.

Water for Elephants

The Synopsis
Just as Jacob (Robert Pattinson)is about to take his exam to make him a registered Veterinarian he is told that both his parents have died in a car accident. Distraught and without a place to call home he leaves town and jumps on a circus train. The Ringmaster of the circus, August (Christoph Waltz) takes a liking to him and hires him as the Circus's vet. It is here that he meets August's wife, the beautiful Marlena (Reece Witherspoon) and learns the trials and joy that is life in the 1930's circus.

The Review
Four months ago I saw this trailer for a film called Water for Elephants and was immediately taken aback by the imagery. Two days later I bought the book and had finished it before the week was out. The book simply blew me away.

Since then I have been waiting rather impatiently for this film and finally tonight I got to watch it. Let me tell you now, if you're wondering over the next month what film you'd like to see... choose this one.

Let's get the obvious bit out of the way first. It almost doesn't need to be said because any hardcore RPatz fans will probably be set on seeing this anyway, but for all you who love him, you will not be disappointed. It is definitely something to help take the edge off the long wait till November for Breaking Dawn.

But I want to say this to those who aren't fans of his. This is not just a film for people to swoon over Robert Pattinson. Please do not be disheartened from seeing it for that reason. Yes, he's in it and yes, when he first came onto the screen there was an excited gasp from a large population of the female viewers in the cinema, but this film is so much more than that. It's beautiful and magical and shows both the glamourous and not so glamourous life of the 1930's Circus.

Reece Witherspoon and Christoph Waltz are both amazing in this film. Christoph Waltz played August so well, they couldn't have cast anyone better.

For those who are going in to see it having read the book. Never fear people, they are very true to the book! The only large change they have made is by making August the Ringmaster and getting rid of the book's Ringmaster (Uncle Al) altogether. I've got to admit though, for the film it made sense. There were some slight differences in the storyline nearer the end due to this change but they find their way back again and keep all the best parts from the book in the film.

It's very well done and captures the heart of the story beautifully. Please people, see this film, it's one to watch! Not to mention the Elephant (Rosie) in it is adorable.

Now I said previously in my review for Never let me go that I would be a lot more stingy with my five faces and only reward films with that marking if it touched me as much as that film had. This isn't on the same level but at the same time, the idea of giving it any less doesn't seem right. So for completely gorgeous reasons that made me smile inside and out I'm going to dust off my five faces and give it to this film. It's not perfect but then again, I don't think I'll ever find a film as amazing as Never let me go was so it would be unfair to tarnish this film for that reason alone.

Thor

The Synopsis
Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is set to be the next in line to the throne of Asgard. However, his head strong attitude and his selfish nature land him in danger. He needs to find the true attitude of a king before he can ever continue. His journey takes him to Earth and into the life of Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), but will he ever find what it takes to truly be a king?

The Review
Okay, I'm going to be honest. I went to see this film for two reasons: 1. It had Natalie Portman in it and 2. I was outvoted in terms of what my other friends wanted to see.

I wasn't exactly excited at the prospect of seeing this one as I'd seen one too many bad Marvel movies in the past but I've got to say, this one was pretty awesome!

It was very well written with some comedy gems in there that had the whole cinema laughing and although there was a lot of content to cover in the movie, it kept a fast pace and in turn kept me entertained.

What impressed me the most however, was the imagery. Moments like the transition from Earth to Asgard were amazing and the whole of how Asgard was set out simply rocked. I loved the attention that had gone into the detail of this world. Every part of this moving and magical city had been meticulously planned out and it showed. I actually left the cinema hoping and praying that such a place existed so that I could go there and sit on their golden furniture and where really uncomfortable metal clothing that probably chafed like a bitch when you walked.

It was inviting, the whole film just sucked you in and you had to be a part of it. I loved it.

And yes, Natalie Portman was once again in another film. That woman literally has not stopped working for what seems like a millennium to get all the films that she's done in. She was, of course, amazing as was Chris Hemsworth who managed to jump from serious to comical and then back again in the space of one scene and with such ease I had to tip my metaphorical hat at him.

All in all, a very good Marvel film and one I will most definitely be going to see the sequel of. Four happy faces from me.

Beastly

The Synopsis
Kyle (Alex Pettyfer) is completely obsessed with looks, convinced that they will take him anywhere. But when he upsets the witch Kendra (Mary-Kate Olsen), she puts a spell on him, taking away his looks for what could be forever if he doesn't find someone to fall in love with him in just one year. Devastated, he moves away from the city, only allowing his housekeeper Zola (Lisa Gay Hamilton) and teacher Will (Neil Patrick Harris) to see him. He's convinced he will never break the spell until he meets Lindy (Vanessa Hudgens) who gives him hope that perhaps he has more to offer than just his appearance.

The Review
Okay, this is a guilty one. The film won't be winning any oscars and there's nothing about it to go 'wow' about, but I have to admit, it was sweet.

I tip my hat to Neil Patrick Harris who proves once again that he can bring comedy to a scene beautifully. This I knew he would be able to do before I went to see the film.

What shocked me however was the performance I saw from Mary-Kate Olsen. She was just so... enchanting. She played the witch in this modern day version of Beauty and the Beast and boy did she play it well. I particularly loved the physical theatre that she gave the character. She bent her body around as she talked in an understated way that, as Film-Buddy-Kezia aptly commented "Commanded your attention to her whenever she was in a scene." She owned that part man. Well done Mary-Kate. Plus, you know, if she ever got tired one day, she could always have just thrown her sister in to play the part. Ah the advantages of identical twindom are endless.

There was one scene that was possibly the worst scene I've ever seen in the whole of my film watching life. It was clear that there were two halves to this film, the part that was before Lindy arrives at Beast Kyles house to live and the part after. It was also clear that there was a large transition to get the girl who had barely spoken to Kyle to decide to live there. This would have to be dealt with well to show the marked change.

The film makers I get the impression however, decided to forgo the idea of even attempting to do this well. Instead they decided to go with the option of cramming half an hours worth of transition into two minutes and have the people who perform these two minutes to be pretty much the worst actors in the world. I'm not kidding, it was probably the funniest scene in the whole film purely for how BAD it was.

That being said and overlooked because I was sheepishly enjoying it up to this point. I continued to sheepishly enjoy it, whilst knowing in the back of my mind that this probably wasn't really a good film. But you know what? I really don't think I care. I'm going to say I enjoyed it because I did and in all fairness I will be buying the DVD because it was sweet and I like a bit of feel-good sweet every now and again so I shall generously give it four faces from me... with the warning that this one you may not agree with.

Scream 4

The Synopsis
Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) is back in Woodsboro to promote her new book on how to move on from being a victim. However, from the moment she comes back, she is thrown into a world she is sadly all too familiar with as calls begin to come in asking a whole new generation the big question. "What's your scary movie?"

The Review
Okay, so I don't know if I am able to be anything other than completely biased with this film review as the whole Scream series are such a massive part of my teenage life that I can't help but completely geek out over there being a new one!

I have many a memory of girly sleep overs where we would curl up under a blanket on the sofa and scream into our popcorn at each new death. If you know me at all from my randomthoughts blog page, you would know that I am not a fan of the scary movie. However these films I tend to have a little bit of a immunity to due to my excitement for re-living my teen years being a far more dominant emotion.

I can't tell you the feeling of joy I felt when I first saw Dewey (David Arquette), Gail (Courtney Cox) and Sidney (Neve Campbell) all together in one scene again. And although yes they are not life changing films and yes they may not have much substance to it and yes they're even not particularly that scary but it is SCREAM man!! It is it's own thing.

It did what Scream did best, it analysed the film for you as you watched. Really there is no need for me to review it because they do it all themselves. The whole film constantly played the pros and cons of the series off each other through the film version of the real life events called 'Stab.'

Film-Buddy-Kezia had not seen any of the others and managed to enjoy it still (which I'm not surprised because it's awesome). My FAVOURITE bits throughout were when they tipped their hats to the previous films (mainly the first) and created in some cases almost identical situations as we have found previously (garage door opening, boyfriend tied to chair).

I also LOVED the opening sequence, creating a series of scenes of a 'film inside a film' idea and, again, doing what they do best by bringing a few well known actors into the mix for one scene cameos (Anna Paquin, Kristen Bell).

This is the first film for a while where I've come out, punching the air and saying 'Yesss man, I'm buying the DVD.' I guess that means it can only have one score.

Your Highness

The Synopsis
Thadeous (Danny McBride) is the younger brother of the impressive and good looking warrior Prince, Fabious (James Franco) and has always been in his shadow. But when Fabious's bride Belladonna (Zooey Deshcanel) gets kidnapped by the evil warlock Leezar (Justin Theroux) he is forced to work with his brother and brave his first quest to bring her back home. Along the way they meet Isabel (Natalie Portman), a beautiful warrior who Thadeous immediately falls for.

The Review
I liked this. It was funny in a way that these particular film makers and writers are. It had an feeling that screamed if Pineapple Express had been set thousands of years prior then this is what it would have been.

I loved the juxta positioning they did of the Medieval time they were in and the modern language and other little bits and pieces of today's time thrown in. It became a running joke throughout the film that didn't ever get old.

I particularly adored Fabious's almost incestuous love that he had towards his younger brother, always hugging him that little too close and talking about him with just that little bit too much adoration in his eyes.

I also realised that I hate Natalie Portman's body (in the sense that I loved it and mourned that I do not have it). I'm usually not that fussed about my own weight, I'm too lazy to really do anything about it anyway. But I watched this and thought, hmmmm, I definitely envy you Natalie Portman. Film-Buddy-Kezia had a particularly humourous moment during watching this film as she turned to me just as Natalie Portman was taking off her clothes to bathe and said "I love Natalie Portman." She then stopped, tilted her head to one side and added, "Probably not the best point of the film to mention my appreciation for her acting is it? It just sounds sort of pervy now." Oh how I laughed.

Overall it was a fun film, I did have to take a moment of amazement at one point as I realised I was watching a scene with 6 or so actors all speaking in an English accent and not one of them actually was from England. That seemed a little weird lol.

I can't bring myself to give it anymore than three faces because although I enjoyed it, there were moments I felt dragged and, well, there really wasn't anything about it that made me get that excited tbh. It is a fun one though and I definitely do recommend it if you fancy laugh. Especially if you are a Pineapple Express fan.

Red Riding Hood

The Synopsis
Valarie (Amanda Seyfried) lives in a village that is haunted each month by a werewolf. This werewolf, the town soon begins to realise could only be one of them. Valarie has to find out who this wolf is, could it be her secret love Peter (Shiloh Fernandez), the man that she is betrothed to Henry (Max Irons) or even her own Grandmother (Julie Christie).

The Review
Okay, so to say I've been excited about seeing this one would be a bit of an understatement. The idea around the film caught my eye and then to top it all off Amanda Seyfried was starring in it, Catherine Hardwicke was directing it and Leonardo Di Caprio was a producer. How could it possibly be anything other than amazing?

I think that there may be the reason for my not actually enjoying it as much as I hoped. My standards were unbelievably high and although it was an entertaining and highly competent film, there were just a few things that forced it to fall short of how great it could have been.

Let's start off with the things I did like. The iconic images from the fairy tale were portrayed in amazing light throughout the film. For any of you who have seen the trailer, you might remember the shot of Valarie walking up a snow filled mountain a long trail of red cloak blowing behind her. The magnificent red on white imagery was a token part all the way through as you can see in the above picture. It made me feel excited about what the film had to offer, like seeing a fairy tale shown with some level of reality (well, as real as you can get when your talking about a village being terrorised by a werewolf).

I also loved how true it was to the fairy tale whilst completely standing out as it's own piece. It kept the memorable scenes of the travelling to Grandma's with a basket and red cloak and managed to get away with using the "Grandmother, what big eyes you have" sequence without losing the integrity of the film which was quite a feat. There was one particular moment close to the end where they may have stretched the bounds of reality a little too much in order to accommodate the fairy tale but all in all, an awesome job.

Okay, here are the bits that forced me to drop a face off my overall score. As important as the whole "Whodunnit" plot was to the story, I fear they may have gone a little overboard. Due to absolutely everyone being a possible murderer it was really hard for me to form any kind of attachment to the characters or their relationships with each other. This left me therefore uncomfortable throughout the film and not really able to settle on any particular character. It caused a detachment that I don't think they intended to make.

Also the ending was a little strange and although Film-Buddy-Kezia seemed to approve of it, I was on the fence. Probably due to the fact that I had no involvement with the film by the end. That whole premise unfortunately just threw the quality of the film slightly out of whack but other than that, it was an enjoyable film that I would see again now I am aware of what happens. I might actually enjoy it a lot better that way.

Three faces from me.