As much as I loathe to say this, I pretty much agree with Shambler. The film oozes polish and love, and that's why I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The 3D effects weren't really utilized that well, and with the glasses the movie looked way too dark. 

but why does it have to be cheesy? Star Trek (review coming) proved you dont have to be totally dumb to make a sci fi spectacle.

Anyway, what do I know, it will be the biggest movie of all time in a few days. 

They just steal Cartman's Smurfs return to fern gulley idea?

Spose will have to see it now. 

Lowest common denominator, appeal to the herds. But yes then again Star Trek was a little bit better.

It's a disease of cinema / blockbusters in general... 

Anyone seen Moon? I really enjoyed it, need more SF like this in cinema, and less crazy aliens with laser guns (or bow and arrows).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twuScTcDP_Q 

Also,

http://media.noob.us/avatarpocahontas.jpg

:D 

hopefully arriving tomorrow so that I can watch on the weekend. It looks a little bit 2001 and a little bit Solaris. 

I caught it completely by accident while in New York, which was very nice, because it never got a proper theater release here.

Very good, very highly recommended. 

Yeah, it's a bit of both, but not quite like either in the end, which is good (both of those are in my favorite movie list, I'm a sucker for SF), can't say more or I'd be spoiling.

Vig yeah I waited a long time for it to come out here (usually most movies get at lease a small release in Paris), but it never came out. Would have really liked seeing it at the cinema. =\ 

Avatar = Pocahontas bis.... 8|

Damned.. I was about to go seeing it at the cinema.. you just ruined my evening :( 

Wtf are you chatting about? Star Trek was horrible. And got worse the longer you sat through it... At least Avatar has amazing CGI 

"Damned.. I was about to go seeing it at the cinema.. you just ruined my evening :("

There are 7 stories in the world. You've seen them all by now. Don't worry about it. 

I thoroughly enjoyed Star Trek, I thought it was fast paced and it brought me into the world.

I haven't seen Avatar, and I don't plan to. I am not one who generally gets excited about pure CGI movies (Transformers, ahem) and if the story doesn't look all that good I will probably not bother watching it. 3D effects or not. 

Star Trek = 6/10 maybe 7 

http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/reviews/transformers-2-10-things-i-liked-5-i-didnt.php 

The Transformers movies were atrocious. Just horrible. I can't believe anyone but the most hardcore fanboy would like them. 

The reason Michael Bay is such a shitty director isn't because Transformers are movies aimed at kids. It's because he is a shitty director. There's no substance to his movies, and even what he claims to do well, action, is pretty non-engaging and formulaic. Big budget movies where nothing really happens, and even the explosions are a chore to get through. 

I dont think its the story that's lacking, theres been many many successfull riffs on the pocahontas story, but the execution.

Michael Bay action scenes are ok sometimes, the problem is he knows only one way to shoot them, most the time so close to the action that you cant really tell or care whats going on, especially with the subwoofer going beserk to drown your ears at the same time. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irony 

I actually find his older films are better... I really enjoyed The Rock, it was a very solid action film!

As for his newer stuff, I also really enjoyed The Island, and I think it got unfairly written off as a "Bay movie" without people giving it a fair chance. Its by no means perfect, and the constant product placement will drive a few people nuts, but the story and characters are a lot deeper than any of his other films that I can think of.

Moon, looks good Bal! Thanks for linking. 

would have been ok if no other sci fi films had ever been made :) too much rippage going on there to get away with. 

Scarlet Johannsen running around in a tight suit.

Great beer movie. 

Fail Safe (1964) - Sidney Lumet's film about nuclear war came out at the same time as one of Kubrick's highpoints, Dr Strangelove. It suffered in comparison at the time and, looking at it objectively today, it still suffers.

Unlike Kubrick's satire, this is a deadly serious film but apart from a gloomy atmosphere created by the stark black and white cinematography, it has next to no dramatic tension or impact. All very strange considering the filmmaking talent involved and the strong cast, including Henry Fonda and Walter Matthau.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058083/

4/10


Alphaville (1965) - pretty much demonstrates Godard at his best and worst. A deliberately low budget sci if satire with some very clever ideas but also a display of outright contempt for the genre. The basic plot is not all that different from A Brave New World (mixed with a little bit of 1984) set in the titular futuristic city, and when Godard is actually trying he manages to offer some very insightful commentary that is also quite touching.

But, unfortunately, most the time is spent displaying how above the genre and material Godard thinks he is by deliberately going out of his way to break convention and highlight the low budget nature of the movie (eg the main character has to make an intergalactic voyage to Alphaville, which looks a lot like 60's Paris, and he does so by way of what looks a lot like a Ford along a highway, all done with a very straight face).

Credit to the actors for playing along and making it all look believable but a little less self indulgence and ego stroking and a little more respect for the audience would have made for a better film.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058898/

5.5/10


The Young Victoria (2009) - well made if not very original royal period drama with a terrific lead performance from Emily Blunt. Whenever she's on screen, and thankfully it�s a lot, this rises from above average to quite good.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0962736/

7/10


Bellissima (1951) - excellent neo-realist satire from Luchino Visconti with Anna Magnani as a lower class pushy mother determined to get her child into the movies. Equally balancing humour and pathos, Visconti rightly lets Magnani's magnetic presence dominate each scene she is in.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043332/

7.5/10


The Insect Woman (1962) - Shohei Imamura's bizarre, matter of fact, sprawling, blackly comic take on the rise and fall of post war Japan viewed through the life and misadventures of a poor farmer's illegitimate daughter is a brilliant film, but one which does require a little bit of effort from the viewer to really work.

Spanning half a century of Japanese history with little to no indication/announcement of time shifts, it does require some close attention to work out when and what is happening, but rewards you with a fresh and vibrant display of intelligent storytelling.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057363/

7.5-8/10


The Natural (1984) - A baseball movie made out of the Arthurian legend. It has to be seen to be believed but this is a stunning, if overlong, film which is not really about baseball but the pursuit of the American dream and the pitfalls along the way. Gorgeously shot by Caleb Deschanel in an array of golden hues and with a commanding central performance by Robert Redford, this is one of the best sports based movies ever made.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087781/

7.5/10


Up (2009) - exhilarating stuff, loved pretty much every part of this, Pixar's best film since Toy Story 2 and easily the best film of last year. The opening 15 min are more touching than most full length films and the subsequent adventure story is tremendously entertaining and fun. Doug is a classic Pixar character.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1049413/

8.5/10


Adventureland (2009) - someone forgot to write a credible third act but until then this is an extremely solid and likeable coming of age flick with decent laughs, a very fitting soundtrack and good performances from the ever reliable Jesse Eisenberg and also Kristen Stewart.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091722/

6.5/10


He Walked By Night (1948) - probably the prototype for all crime/police procedural films and tv shows ever made, Anthony Mann's documentary styled film noir is a little dated in some aspects but is still striking because of the great John Alton's camerawork and an objective and unbiased focus on the criminal character being pursued. Alton had a number of theories on lighting and I bet he employed all of them in this film, in which each scene looks different from but as astonishing as the one before.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040427/

6.5-7/10 

Fawlty Towers Series 1 and 2 - didn�t find it brilliant but its definitely very funny. Some of the writing's a bit hit and miss but the performances and casting are very spot on.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0072500/

7-7.5/10


Monsoon Wedding (2001) - rewatch, wasn�t a huge fan on initial release of this bollywoodesque riff on Father of the Bride. This time around I thought it was pretty brilliant for about 60% of the film but the last part got far too melodramatic, albeit deliberately, to have any real impact. Naseerudin Shah is excellent in the central role and he gets good support from a number of supporting players too.

Interestingly, this was shot by Declan Quinn, who also shot the more drab looking but similarly home-video styled Rachel Getting Married.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0265343/

6.5-7/10


Drag Me to Hell (2009) - Sam Raimi's return to the Evil Dead brand of film is not really scary enough or funny enough to work as either a horror or comedy. Then again, neither were the original Evil Dead films so a lot of how much you will like this depends on how much you enjoy the Evil Dead brew of silly comedic horror. I would have preferred it to be more of one or the other rather than the passable mixture that it is.

Still, at least its somewhat original, which is more than you can say for most horror these days which usually involves a remake or a sequel.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1127180/

6/10


Badlands (1973) - Terence Malick's equally beautiful and disturbing take on a Bonnie and Clyde type story has many notable features including Malick's evocative use of landscape and imagery, Martin Sheen's amazing performance (which is surely one of the all time great performances) and Sissy Spacek's depiction of an unknowing sociopath. Spacek's character lends the film a voiceover which is equal parts poetic, when it narrates the character's feelings, and outright disturbing, when it makes offhanded remarks about the killing committed by the couple.

Falters a bit towards the end, which is not as strong as it should be, but an impressive and memorable film nonetheless.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069762/

7.5/10


Coraline (2009) - beautiful stop motion rendering of Neil Gaiman's novel, which itself is inspired by Alice in Wonderland, having all the hallmarks of a Tim Burton's styled film. The first half is better than the second, mixing nice scenes of magical enchantment, odd characters, and an undercurrent of darkness. The second half, which is focused on the darkness, lacks a bit of bite but is still imaginatively animated and rendered.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0327597/

7/10


Star Trek (2009) - never seen any Star Trek but was pretty impressed with this even though the overused lens flare effect almost drove me insane. Reasonably intelligent, quite fun and with likeable characters. Action scenes were also pretty impressive. Cant all blockbusters be the same?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0796366/

7-7.5/10


GIJoe (2009) - so ludicrous it was almost enjoyable but the terrible special effects don�t allow for that. Seriously, where did the $160m budget actually go? Some of the effects were tv standard.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1046173/

4/10


Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) - dorky loner nerd teen invents a machine that can make it rain food from the sky. Narratively weak, but the original concept makes for a fun animated film with some brilliant and ingenious scenes of destruction by food.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844471/

6.5/10 

The Wire Season 5 - seriously stretches credibility for the first half of the season, particularly noticeable given how realistic and believable everything up until now has been, but none of that matters once it settles into finalisation mode. Quite possibly the most satisfying and memorable finish to any drama series, let along arguably the greatest drama series of all time. The final episode is pitch perfect.

8/10


Mad Men Season 2 - pretty much lives up to everything the tremendous first season set up with great character development, particularly the women. Some of the character writing is of serious quality and its all set up for potentially another great season to follow by the end. And style wise, this is second to none.

8.5/10


Moon (2009) - I feel a bit bad trouncing what is a legitimate attempt at a serious and thoughtful science fiction film but there are a couple of major faults that are showstoppers. First time director Duncan Jones has definitely done his research, creating a rich mood that is 2001 meets Solaris meets Alien. Unfortunately, that's the all the plusses (although I suppose Sam Rockwell in the lead is decent enough). The script has serious problems, particularly once a certain event has happened. After this event, I found the character interaction to be very suspect, contrived and requiring too big a suspension of disbelief to seem credible. A number of gaping plot holes also reared their heads. Some of this could have been ignored if the movie actually tackled the issues it raised rather than simply skimming the surface, but unfortunately the script didnt even allow for that.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1182345/

5.5/10


The Brothers Bloom (2009) - Like Moon I really wanted to like this too, Rian Johnson's meant to be fun attempt at the con movie. It is not a homage to any of the great con movies but rather more akin to Wes Anderson's style of whimsical filmmaking. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but Johnson is no Anderson and cannot deftly balance the drama and quirky humour in the same way. This movie works when its trying to be slyly humorous, not so much when it tries to be serious. Mildly amusing but fairly lacking.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844286/

5-5.5/10