I was a little hesitant after watching Jeff Nichols' previous film, 'take shelter' that one felt a little uncomfortable at times, but Mud is a complete hit, a winner! Mud, the main character is played by Matthew McConaughey who without wanting to give to much away is a man on the run hoping to hook up to the love of his life played by Reece Witherspoon.
Mud enlists the help of 2 young boys, one of them particularly becomes fascinated with Mud, as the more he learns about him, the more Mud's life is somewhat equal with what he is going through both at home and at school also. Both boys are happy to go ahead and help Mud, seeing the whole thing as an adventure, which I suppose it is for a young boy, meeting a fugitive in the woods, helping him plot his escape.
One reason I found this film so brilliant was the scenery. Some of the swamps, rivers and town images we see are Beautiful, like any other Americana movie, such as Thelma & Louise, Easy Rider , the grapes of wrath or the Outsiders you really get a sense of America and in particular Arkansas where this film is located. Some of scenery we see at the 2 young boy's home are in particular breathtakingly staggering, the images of the houseboats on the river will be a great sense of escapism to many a non American.
The cast is also brilliant, Matthew McCoonaughey has been brilliant for a few years now especially since I saw him in killer Joe, It's also really nice to see Sam Shepard pop up here too, this coming from a huge western fan where I'm more used to seeing him, Michael Shannon has a much smaller role than we are used to seeing him these days but is very good and Ray McKinnon as the boys father is very good, he may seem familiar from Deadwood or Son's of anarchy.
The film ties up very nicely, not too clichéd at all, and for music fans keep your ears out for a Beach Boys classic, Help me Rhonda!
This movies comes highly recommended, my favourite movie of 2013 hands down. *****
A true slice of Americana
Fantastic idea, lots of surprises and full of suspense and anticipation a true work of genius from that master of the genre Stephen King. The only downside was that I was expecting it to be a mini-series and would be seeing the conclusion in the last episode instead of waiting till next year for the second season..Hope it doesn't go on like "Lost".
Whole town trapped when an invisible dome suddenly cuts them off from the rest of the world!
This film is a great roller coaster feature for the whole family, some say that Tontos character can be easily linked to Captain Jack Sparrow as they both carry the same sense of personality and wit.
After Dark Shadows not doing to well at the Box Office, Depp carries his new character to where he has always been at the top.
in some regards this film is to long, however Pirates Of The Carribean is near the same as this blockbuster.
audiences will have to spot what other character Depp plays, However the film itself starts with a boy visiting a carnival in an exhibition an old man tells the story of The Lone Ranger (John Reid) comes back to his home town of Colby on a train which is also carrying the villain of the film Butch Cavendish who is going to be punished for what he has done, however he manages to get away it is time for Lone Ranger to strike and capture Butch however he is going to need help.
The Lone Ranger is back this time with an all star cast including Armie Hammer and Johnny Depp.
what a brilliant show, Rhod released this dvd after his jacket potato rounite in front of The Queen on The Royal Variety Show.
The title of the dvd is the main story of the show.
Rhod continutes to build topics that everyone thinks about just when you think Gilbert has achieved something he goes the extra mile and takes the audience on a unforgettable ride in his ranting diary enter world from Trains to Jacket Potatos this dvd is the best one in Gilberts selection - A must have 8.5/10
Catch Rhods Best dvd to date, The Man with the Flamming Battenburg Tatoo.
Filmed at The Hammer Smith Apollo
A warm family friendly film about the story of one of Britain's best loved Chefs Nigel Slater, the film progresses through the sixties when Nigel was a child right up to a young man.
After the loss of his Mother, Nigel cant cope with living him his bitter dad who doesn't show any love to him what so ever. Also after seen as a misfit/outsider in school there are not many people he can turn to.
Helena Bonham Carter plays Mrs parker a cleaner who tries to help Nigel and his dad continue with life however she wants something more than removing the dust from the carpets.
Freddie Highmore and Ken Scott portrait a love/hurt relationship as father and son in this touching British true based film.
How did Nigel grow into the love for food, this movie clearly gives a good summary of how a young boys passion became his life and dream.
The director has carefully managed to get every detail to its best, from the cars to the food wrappers. Toast is feel good film 7.5/10
This isn't a review. It's a cry for help.
You see, over the past few months I've become hooked on a highly addictive substance, known by the street name of "BB". Don't look at me that way: when I first started off, I thought I could take it. A few episodes here and there when I felt like it: I wasn't doing anyone any harm. And I could stop at any time. Or so I thought. Because before long, I found that I'd worked my way through Breaking Bad in its entirety - and if you're not careful, you could get addicted too.
It usually starts innocently enough. A friend or coworker offers you your first hit on DVD, and you accept it as much out of politeness as anything else. After all, the concept sounds interesting enough: a high-school chemistry teacher, Walter White, is struck down with lung cancer, and decides that he's going to use the last few months of his life to earn some cash for his family through criminal means. And against all expectations, those criminal means involve becoming a drugs kingpin, using Walter's knowledge of science to manufacture the highest-grade crystal meth that the underworld has ever seen.
It only takes a single opening episode to set out this premise, but by the time you finish it you'll already be irretrievably intrigued to see what comes next. Yes, even at this early stage, the show has got you exactly where it wants you - because even from the very start, you'll find the plotlines involving Walter's friends and family (his wife Skyler and his son Walt Jr.) to be so unpredictable and compelling that you'll simply have to see what's next. And in a flash, that's it: you find that you're addicted.
But frankly, there aren't many better shows to become addicted to than this. I haven't seen many series that can remain as true to their central premise while still offering up so many unexpected and riveting story developments, and pull them off with such intelligence and panache. Without spoiling any later developments, the show manages to make every new wrinkle in Walter's life completely logical, while still keeping the audience guessing at every stage - making it incredibly satisfying to watch.
Looking back from the closing episodes of Breaking Bad's final season (I've watched the entire series in just a couple of months, such is the seriousness of my BB problem), it seems staggering to remember how the show's characters started out - but at the same time, none of the developments ever feels forced or contrived, instead acting as an in-depth exploration of how Walter's decisions might affect him, turning him from the mild-mannered schoolteacher we meet in the very first episode into the evil creature that we see in the last.
Undoubtedly, the key to this success is Bryan Cranston's performance as Walter. Before watching Breaking Bad, I knew him best as Malcolm's Dad from Malcolm in the Middle, but since seeing this series I don't think I'll ever be able to look at him in the same way. Over the course of the series, he runs the gamut of emotion from meekness to moral conflictedness to cold-hearted villainy, and he does it all so effectively that you'll never question the notion that these are all different aspects of the same complex character.
And Cranston is supported by a great ensemble of secondary players too, whether it's Aaron Paul as Walter's partner-in-crime, Jesse Pinkman (who goes from being a reprehensible dropout loser to being the closest thing the show has to a moral centre), Dean Norris as Walter's brother-in-law Hank (who just happens to be a high-ranking cop specialising in busting drug dealers), or Bob Odenkirk as sleazy lawyer Saul Goodman, who infuses the show with some wonderful over-the-top humour just when it needs it.
To tell you how the overarching story of the show plays out would be to ruin the surprise, but suffice it to say that the series is packed with smart writing (including a clever use of mysterious flashforwards that foreshadow future events), gobsmacking cliffhangers and oh-my-god-he-didn't-just-do-that character moments that simply demand that you sit up and take notice of every episode.
In short, this is the greatest show to have graced television since The Sopranos. And for that reason, my cry for help isn't to help wean me off Breaking Bad - it's to help me spread the word about just how brilliant it is.
having seen this show live, you can expect a top gig from Sean Lock, however I preferred Lockpeida funnier as some topics in this feature weren't for me, However audiences can expect Seans normal approach to things and see him as a performer come alive after 2 years from Lockpedia.
what a ending?
Catch Sean Locks third Stand up dvd for xmas 2013.
sequels don't seem better than the first however Red 2 captures good elements and strong action in this fast paced movie with comic timing.
Anthony Hopkins joins the normal cast Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren and John Malkovich as he plays a mad scientist locked in a cell.
a good follow on 6/10. a good xmas buy
a good ppv for all wwe fans, bray Wyatt made his wwe debut match against kane which was a good opener which followed rvd vs Ambro (Kick off show)
perhaps the worst fight of the night was Del Rio and Christian, how many times have we seen these two go at it,
Brock Lesnar took on Cm punk (Beast vs the Best) this bound is clearly in the top 3 matches of the year, a stunning fight with great finish.
one of the biggest events of the year happens at summer, watch the underdog Daniel Bryan take on The Champ John Cena with consequences that would lead into the next 3 months of the Wwe.
With Disney's Saving Mr. Banks about to be released in UK cinemas at the end of the month, it seems like the perfect time for the studio to release their adaptation of P.L. Travers' iconic character on Blu-ray for the first time.
The 50th Anniversary Edition is full to the brim with bonus features, and with the milestone anniversary approaching next year, it really does amaze how timeless a classic this film really is. The story is simply remarkable.
Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke are still absolutely fantastic in the leads as Mary Poppins herself and Bert, and few and far between are performances as wonderful to enjoy as theirs. The chemistry that the two share on screen is a real joy to watch as their relationship unfolds, and it takes you right back to childhood, to whenever you first watched the film.
I admit I'm far from old enough to have seen its first run in cinemas, but I remember watching it when I was growing up years ago, and having not seen it for a number of years, I've fallen in love with it all over again. Certainly, this is not just a film for children, but it's one meant for the entire family. And with its arrival on Blu-ray this month, it has never looked so crisp and so brilliant on the small screen, particularly now that our screens are no longer quite so small in the comfort of our own homes.
Produced by Walt Disney himself, upon release, the film went on to win Julie Andrews the Best Actress Award at the Oscars, and watching her performance again, that's really not surprising at all. Not only did Andrews win, but the film also won in a handful of other categories, including Best Song for the marvelous Chim Chim Cher-ee, which you cannot help but sing along to whenever you even just read those words.
Watching the film again, it's amazing to remember how many of these songs have gone on to become such a staple in popular culture in the decades since. Not just Chim Chim Cher-ee, but of course also such classics as A Spoonful of Sugar, Feed the Birds, and we can't forget Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (though it may be a nightmare to spell!). It's no wonder it won Best Song, with so many greats to choose from.
As the studio's anticipated Saving Mr. Banks approaches its release in cinemas, itself coming in as a possible Oscar contender, I can't recommend enough how much you ought to revisit this classic piece of cinema before watching Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson bring to life the lives of Walt Disney and Mary Poppins' creator, P.L. Travers. Andrews and Van Dyke were a revelation fifty years ago, and I'm really looking forward to seeing whether Hanks and Thompson can bring the same kind of magic to the story behind the unforgettable character that is Mary Poppins.
Following the Oscar-winning success of Michel Hazanavicius' film, The Artist, I've been waiting with bated breath to see if a wave of gimmicky silent movies would follow in its wake. Pablo Berger's Blancanieves is not a knock-off of silent cinema by any means, but a vivid and strangely kinky retelling of a classic tale that is only more remarkable for unfolding without sound or colour.
In terms of Snow White, it's interesting to measure this against Hollywood's recent reinventions of the same Grimm fairytale. Rupert Sanders' effects-driven Snow White & The Huntsman very much fell into the bracket of Hollywood's "new seriousness", with its po-faced, monomythic take on the character, while Tarsem Singh's Mirror Mirror proved more enjoyable for its light-hearted, pantomime approach, and colourful production design.
Uniquely, Blancanieves finds just the right balance between the two. It's far darker than either of those films, but it doesn't take itself nearly as seriously. And while both of the bigger movies took some refuge in opulent production design, this one skews more closely to the idea of the lead character's own enduring appeal- it's unassuming, but pretty fantastic.
Berger's original take, which sets the story in 1920s Spain, allows him to take us through the motions of the story that we know, in a hugely enjoyable and sometimes disturbing fashion. We're around halfway through the film before Carmen really becomes the heroine.
Nevertheless, we sympathise with her throughout, thanks to the sterling work of Maribel Verdú as her insane, insecure stepmother, Encarna. She's truly the most terrifying version of the character since Disney's interpretation, and that's without actually being a witch, like her forebears. She wins the broken heart of Carmen's father, but does little to mend it- she's a dastardly, vain and sinister woman who terrorises both her new husband and her step-daughter.
Sofía Oria plays the young Carmen in these early scenes, and she's plucky despite the way in which her life is repeatedly marred by tragedy. She has a pet chicken called Pepe, and the strength of that chicken's portayal should be enough to devise some kind of acting award for poultry. You'll weep for that chicken, once he crosses Encarna's path.
More familiar fairytale story beats arise when our heroine grows into a beautiful young woman, played by Macarena García, and she's swiftly dismissed by her stepmother. By this point, we're completely on-side with her character, and the process through which she becomes a famous bullfighter called Blancanieves (literally, "Snow White") is the most purely enjoyable passage of a very entertaining film.
Other canny updates on the tale show Encarna to be a shameless social climber, scanning a magazine for an interview, about the house she has inherited from the family that she destroyed, she's outraged to find Blancanieves on the front cover- mirror mirror, on the wall, who is the most photogenic of them all?
Just when you think you've got a handle on it, Berger takes a left turn at the very end, bringing a truly poignant and demented twist to the familiar happy ending. It feels in keeping with the mischievous tone of the rest of the film, but you come to realise that you're quite fond of the characters, and that really hits home in the surprising finale.
Blancanieves is one of 2013's finest films, with a pitch-black sense of humour that serves to disturb the viewer one minute, and delight them the next. I would say that it's suitable for older children- parents of younger kids may wish to avoid fielding awkward questions about Encarna's S&M habits. It's only more inventive for being a silent film, so I strongly recommend seeking out this hidden gem.
This is a silent movie re-telling of the classic Snow White story- after an attempt is made on her life, the daughter of a famous bullfighter goes on the run from her wicked stepmother, and continues her father's legacy with a band of travelling dwarves.
Never judge a film by its synopsis. That's the lesson of Robot and Frank, a film with a premise that sounds odd on paper, but which takes advantage of an excellent central performance by Frank Langella to become a surprisingly affecting and heartfelt story about ageing, family, and friendship.
Langella plays the titular Frank Weld, an ageing ex-cat-burglar who lives alone and is suffering from the gradual onset of mild dementia. To help keep Frank's mind and body fresh, his son (James Marsden) buys him a helper-robot that will encourage him to eat better, exercise more, and develop a regular daily routine to keep him as fit and healthy as possible. But when an initially reluctant Frank realises that the robot hasn't been programmed to distinguish between moral and immoral acts - and is in fact quite happy to help him plan a series of heists under the auspices of mental stimulation - their relationship moves into a very different place indeed.
You see what I mean? That sounds like quite an odd and offbeat premise for a movie, and not necessarily one that would provide a story that you could really get your teeth into. But Langella's nuanced, sympathetic performance - together with some interesting family-based subplots - really help to elevate the film into something more thoughtful and compelling.
Bolstered by a solid supporting cast - as well as Marsden, Liv Tyler crops up as Frank's hippy, flaky, pro-robot-rights daughter, while Susan Sarandon also makes an appearance as a potential love interest for Frank - the film explores some delicate subjects involving ageing, care for the elderly and our relationship with technology, while also making time for some amusing vignettes that pepper the thoughtfulness with some moments of outright humour.
Also, Peter Sarsgaard, who voices the robot, is careful never to let his dry monotone tip over into an obvious riff on sinister robotic voices like 2001's HAL. Instead, he comes across as more peaceful and neutral - which makes his naive complicity in Frank's crimes all the more amusing.
Finally, I have to compliment first-time director Jake Schreier on getting some of the subtler details of his story just right. The near-future setting is made just different enough from the real world to be noticeable, but still feels very much rooted in reality, with innovations like Frank's holographic video-screen drawing attention to the advanced technology but making it feel very plausible and natural. And even when the film incorporates these forward-looking aspects explicitly as plot points - such as the gradual dismembering of the library where Sarandon's character works, as the books are replaced by their digital equivalents - it does so in a way that feels more relevant to the present-day than it is fantastical and futuristic.
By the time the movie reaches its emotional (but not syrupy or saccharine) ending, you'll probably be surprised to have found yourself won over by such an unassuming little film. However, between the natural charm and amusement that comes from Langella's interactions with his robot companion, and the surprisingly thoughtful and heartfelt nature of the plot, there's an awful lot to like here.
Hilarious Comedy! Bought for my boyfriend who absolutely loves it!! 5*
Before you start watching Flight, make sure you take a minute to bid a fond farewell to your fingernails. Because after you've sat through the excruciatingly tense and nerve-wracking action scene that comes just a few minutes into Robert Zemeckis' amazing movie, I can guarantee that they'll be bitten down to the bone.
The action sequence that I'm referring to is the single event around which the entire movie revolves: the emergency crash-landing of a newly-airborne passenger aeroplane that is piloted by William Whitaker (Denzel Washington), known to his friends as "whip". Whip's deft handling of the situation - through a barrel-roll manoeuvre that simply has to be seen to be believed - saves countless lives, making him a national hero and the subject of much media scrutiny. But when hidden truths about the pilot begin to emerge - including a drink and drugs problem that led to him being 'high' in more ways than one on the morning of the incident - the stage is set for a more ambiguous and thoughtful story to emerge.
This really does feel like a film of two parts - the incident itself and the fallout from it - so I'll deal with each one individually.
First of all, the amazing action sequence that shows the aeroplane getting struck down by technical problems and being piloted to the ground is simply one of the most arresting and attention-grabbing scenes I've ever seen on film. It's a cliché to talk about being on the "edge of your seat" while watching a particularly tense or engaging movie, but I can promise you that I was literally perched on the very edge of my sofa while watching the entire sequence. From takeoff-to-crash-landing, it only lasts a few minutes, but it feels like a lifetime of suspense and heart-stopping drama. I won't spoil exactly how it turns out, but suffice it to say that it changes Whip's life completely.
However, whether or not that change is for the better is what the second part of the movie is all about. Because when the authorities start to piece together the evidence from the troubled flight - including Whip's blood test results - they realise that the apparently heroic pilot was under the influence of alcohol and drugs at the time of the incident: a fact which could not only doom Whip's personal life and career, but could also spell financial disaster for the airline due to the insurance requirements for the crash.
With the help of a supportive lawyer (Don Cheadle, in an amusingly straight-laced role that's reminiscent of his character in The Guard), a friend he meets in hospital (a fairly unremarkable Kelly Reilly), and his drug-dealing best friend (a fantastic supporting performance from John Goodman), Whip uses the incident as a catalyst to try and turn his life around. But he soon realises that getting clean isn't as easy as it may seem, and that covering up the truth behind the crash - including the involvement of an air hostess with whom he was having an affair - might ultimately be as damaging as preserving his heroic image.
I won't spoil how the story plays out, except to say that Denzel Washington is required to go through just about every emotion imaginable over the course of this movie - and somehow, he manages to make every scene utterly convincing and compelling. Most impressively, he manages to turn a potentially unsympathetic character like Whip into a truly three-dimensional person who we care about, even when he's acting irresponsibly and reprehensibly.
A subplot involving his estranged family helps to raise the stakes for Whip's personal life, while a constant onslaught of interrogation from the authorities piles on the professional pressure, to the point where it would be easy for the film to fall into melodrama and hyperbole. But - ironically enough for a movie called Flight - Washington always keeps things grounded with a central performance that carries you all the way through to the end of the movie, ensuring that you stick alongside Whip on his difficult and unpredictable journey without ever losing interest or sympathy.
My only real criticism is that the very end of the movie doesn't quite manage to stick the landing, so to speak - sacrificing some of the moral complexity of the rest of the film for a more conventional and moralistic conclusion than I would have expected. But I'll only knock off a single star for that - because up until that point, Flight provides an incredibly compelling story that somehow manages to make the personal drama of a flawed individual just as compelling as the jaw-dropping action sequence that begins the film. And once you've experienced that stunning opening act for yourself, you'll realise just how much of an achievement that is.
The once upon a time series is fantastic and really has you on the edge of your seat the story and characters are brilliant and the writers have done a great job it thoroughly enjoyable and i cant wait for the new season to come out i have pre-ordered it already for an eagerly awaited christmas present
Just Fantastic
It's far too early to call Breaking Bad the greatest television series ever. As exciting and engaging as it has been to watch, it's easy to like the show, and to like people talking about it a little less. Thus far, the series seems fairly backlash-proof, but irrespective of the hype, the final season of Vince Gilligan's series is as audacious and spellbinding as the build-up would suggest.
After the season 5 cliffhanger finally revealed Walt's criminal doings to Hank, there's an imminent confrontation between the two brothers-in-law. Over the course of five (and a bit) seasons, just as we've seen Walt become steadily more corrupt, we've also seen Hank become a much better man in his pursuit of Heisenberg, and Gilligan doesn't skimp on the long-awaited reaction to this unforgivable betrayal.
As if the cat-and-mouse game between them in the early episodes of this season isn't compelling enough, Jesse's misery catalyses the series' journey towards the finish line, as he finally chooses his allegiance. Poor Pinkman. The show might just as aptly have been called "The Passion of the Jesse", for how much the character suffers throughout his arc, but strong writing, coupled with Aaron Paul's performance, has always made him the most sympathetic character.
Without giving too much away, the real triumph of this final season is in the sense of closure it delivers to its legion of fans. The ultimate confrontations- the ones which the fans have been waiting for- really take place in "Ozymandias", the antepenultimate episode of the series. It's the best hour of television I've seen all year; a taut, heart-wrenching episode in which all hell truly breaks loose.
But that doesn't mean that the following two episodes are dull by comparison. By eschewing an action-packed finale, Gilligan has time to leave all of his characters in a place that will satisfy the viewers, without rushing to answer every question, or botching any of those developments. Compared to other anticipated series finales, the lesson is that closure is hugely underrated.
As we've come to expect, the acting is excellent, as a rule. Bryan Cranston caps a truly magnificent turn as Walt, Dean Norris finally makes his Hank the de facto hero of the show, and everyone else, from Aaron Paul's sympathetic dealer to Laura Fraser's ruthless businesswoman, seems to raise their game to the same equal standing.
The music continues to be aptly chosen too- Badfinger's "Baby Blue" proves to be the perfect song for the perfect closing image to the series, and the use of music in the season preceding that moment is just as effective. As much as it's too early to declare this the best show ever, it's tough to think of another show that's so dedicated to excellent standards in acting, writing, directing and visuals, all at the same time.
It's a testament to the amount of thought that goes into the show that fans are still debating the meaning of the finale's title, "Felina." It's the name of a song that opens that episode, but it's also an anagram of "finale". Most interestingly though, it can be divided into "Fe Li Na", the chemical symbols for Iron, Lithium and Sodium.
Blood. Meth. Tears. It's a fitting epitaph for a US TV drama par magnificence.
The final eight episodes of AMC's much acclaimed series portrays the downfall of chemistry teacher-turned-drugs kingpin Walter White. Hank Schrader, Walt's brother in law, heads up the DEA investigation to bring down Heisenberg's methamphetamine empire, as Jesse Pinkman grows further and further apart from his former partner. Walt is running out of allies, and as his cancer returns, is he truly past saving?
Young Adult is a brave film for actress Charlize Theron to have taken on. Brave because she plays a largely unlikeable and unpleasant character: Mavis Gary, a ghostwriter of disposable novels aimed at teens, who is as ugly on the inside as she is abrasive on the outside, and whose journey back to her childhood hometown involves making life a lot more uncomfortable for many of its inhabitants. But with an actress of Theron's calibre at the centre of it all, somehow we still come away from the film feeling a kernel of sympathy for Mavis, as well as a slightly deeper understanding of the experiences that have led her to become the bitter, selfish person that she now is.
The plot revolves around Mavis returning to Mercury, Minnesota, after seeing an online picture of the newborn child of her high-school boyfriend, Buddy Slade (Patrick Wilson). As the story unfolds, we witness Mavis' crass and misguided attempts to seduce Buddy, and separate him from his wife Beth (Elizabeth Reaser). And at the same time, she encounters and forms a bond with an ex-classmate, Matt Freehauf (Patton Oswalt), who reveals that his own childhood wasn't as idealised as Mavis remembers hers to be.
Without giving away too much of the plot - as there are only a handful of truly meaningful developments, which would be ruined if you knew them ahead of time - I think it's fair to say that this film functions as a smart commentary on stunted adolescence and people who can't let go of their highschool years, while also providing a certain amount of adult drama for viewers to get their teeth into.
Mavis, in particular, is a wonderful creation: funny, tragic, likeable and offensive all at the same time, with her many character traits being held in a delicate balance through Theron's masterful performance. When the big reveal of her innermost secret finally takes place, it's a scene in which myriad tangled emotions are channeled into a single, powerful scene, and one that retrospectively changes your understanding of everything that has gone before it - helping to justify a story that might have otherwise seemed pointless and meandering without such a definite punctuation mark at the end.
Patrick Wilson and Patton Oswalt also do well in their supporting roles, juggling comic performances with slightly meatier and more serious content in a way that never sells either aspect short.
Even if the plot is a bit on the thin side and takes a little too long to make its point - and once it gets there, spells its ideas out in a way that's a little too on-the-nose - Young Adult is worth watching just for Theron's excellent performance as the kind of character that most A-list actresses would be afraid to even touch. And for that, she should be congratulated.
The film sticks closely to the book, like lord of the rings. It's clearly directed by Peter Jackson, the standard throughout is high, the cast is amazing. I loved the dwarves singing in Bilbo's home, added to the feel of the film and brought the book to life. The SFX are amazing. I loved how Jackson has included bits that were mentioned at the end of the book into the film, like Gandalf seeking advice from Saruman. The attention to detail has made this film amazing.
Exhilarating epic set in the Arabian Peninsula during the oil boom of the late 1920s. 'Black Gold' a.k.a. 'Day of the Falcon' sees rival rulers Emir Nesib (an excellent Antonio Banderas) and Sultan Amar (the superb Mark Strong) agree to a truce and draw up a demarcation line at a disputed tract of desert land known as the Yellow Belt.
Amar, having lost the war, sends his two sons to live with Nesib's family so that neither clan attacks the other again. Years later, Amar's son; Prince Auda (a heroic Tahar Rahim) marries Nesib's daughter; Princess Leyla (a smouldering Freida Pinto) but the arrival of American prospectors looking to exploit the Yellow Belt in a bid to find oil, re-ignites old hostilities: Emir Nesib sees it as an opportunity to enrich the region whereas the traditional and reserved Sultan Amar objects to the American presence.
Adapted from the book 'South of the Heart: A Novel of Modern Arabia' a.k.a. 'The Great Thirst' a.k.a. 'The Arab' by Hans Ruesch. 'Black Gold' is a return to form by veteran director Jean-Jacques Annaud who creates a commendably old-fashioned, romantic adventure with breathtaking desert vistas, intense battle scenes and, most importantly, believable characters.
Tahar Rahim is a charismatic leading man and ably supported by the ever-reliable Riz Ahmed who plays an unorthodox young doctor. Mark Strong cuts a sober and enigmatic figure as the honourable patriarch. Freida Pinto looks stunning throughout and strives to make her character more than the token love interest whilst Antonio Banderas very nearly steals the show with his take on a complex and rewarding role.
The cast are so good that you rarely stop to consider that only one of them is actually Arab, for 'Black Gold' is such a carefully considered, subtle, mature, beautifully constructed film that few would mark it down for that. An undiscovered gem.
"It will make grown men cry."
This is the praise with which Shane Meadows' documentary, The Stone Roses: Made of Stone, was received upon its theatrical release. As a big fan of the British band's music, the film was naturally a must-see for me when it came out in cinemas over the summer, especially since I was present at one of the band's three shows on their home turf in Manchester last year.
And after watching it again this month, now it's been released on Blu-ray/DVD, I heartily agree with all of the overwhelmingly positive reviews that have surrounded it. It is surely one of the best documentaries I can ever remember seeing, and definitely one of the best music documentaries. Rare is a director's passion for the band so evident as it is with Meadows.
The writer-director has had a very interesting career, perhaps really earning the praise he'd long deserved with 2006's This Is England. The film launched him to new heights of recognition, and he's used that platform so well to get more interesting projects made, just like Made of Stone.
Fitting in neatly into three acts, with terrific use of old footage, including long-forgotten interviews with the band from their early years, Made of Stone charts the band's buzzed reunion, first announced towards the end of 2011, after a decade and a half of silence.
Part one takes in a free gig for die-hard fans, who were only accepted into the venue with proof of their love for the band - album liner notes, for instance. Part two goes on to their following tour in Europe, during which the band's drummer, Alan Wren, threatens to throw a spanner in the works and it looks like the long-awaited reunion might not be quite so long-lived. But then comes part three, which brings the band brilliantly home to Manchester, playing three sold-out dates at Heaton Park, the ticket sale for which put the band in the Guinness Book of World Records when the first two dates sold out in just 14 minutes.
It is in Heaton Park that Made of Stone really and truly soars. The atmosphere is absolutely electric, and Meadows captures it powerfully on camera. The band are just as energetic as their audience, fired-up from start to finish, and Meadows uses his incredibly talented eye to seek out the finest moments from their set.
The Stone Roses have had one of the most interesting careers of any British band in recent memory. They changed the face of pop music at the end of the 20th Century for good, and then disappeared almost as if into the night by '96. So when they called a press conference back in late 2011, the anticipation was understandably palpable. Their announcement that they would be going back on the road was amazing, and at the time, you just hoped that they would release a live concert DVD to mark the occasion. But nobody could have guessed that someone as skilled as Shane Meadows would be the one to helm it.
His work here really speaks for itself; he was by far the best director for the job, and the result is a fantastic documentary that very much holds up to that all-important test of the second viewing.
For fans of the band - which is pretty much anyone who liked rock/pop music back in the '90s - this release makes for a perfect Christmas present, and all the better if you can spring for the rather beautiful steelbook edition, which comes with both the Blu-ray and DVD. Along with the full feature, it also includes a hugely insightful audio commentary with Meadows himself, rarely-seen performances that include intimate rehearsals, and much, much more.
It is with baited breath that we should now all look forward to what could be Meadows' final instalment in his acclaimed series, This Is England '90, with many naturally speculating that it will include music from the classic British band themselves, The Stone Roses. He pushed back its production in order to complete work on The Stone Roses: Made of Stone, and it was well worth it. The documentary is one of the finest of its kind, and very much not to be missed now that it's arrived on Blu-ray/DVD.
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