Posts Tagged ‘movie’

Avatar – big, blue, and cabon fiber bones

Tuesday, December 29th, 2009

I see you

This film can really only be described as a master piece of film making that it seems only a few directors are able to pull off.

Lets not mince words here, Avatar is a brilliant film! There, it is said! This is an epic film in every way, from the grand story to the amazing vistas, right through to the stunning technology they have used to create this marvel. The majority of this film is computer generated but in such a life like and detailed way it is hard to see where the computer generation ends and the real people begin. I was very impressed with the similarity between the real actors and their avatars. It just leant a little more to the life like quality of the animation work.

This is a long film (3 hours) but not only does it not feel that long, there isn’t really any fluff that can be trimmed away. Every scene has something it needs to get across to you and where there was a chance to remove a scene it was taken. As a result the film is long but moves at a good pace all the way through. In fact there were a number of scenes where I wanted it to slow a little so I could take in the stunning backgrounds and the details of the world. This will be a very rewarding film to watch at home, not only will you get to hear James Cameron’s take on it, but you will get to really take in the details. I get the feeling the directors cut (if there is one) will be longer.

A lot has been made about this films eco ethics, to be honest I did not feel it. I can see why people would say it has an eco message to tell you, but I never felt it was rammed down my throat. It was more realistic than that. A planet has a mineral people want, they turn up and want to destroy the planet and its people because they don’t give a toss. Any corporation would do that, especially if that planet is six years into deep space.

Confession

I did not see this film in 3D, I wish I had. Even though it has been out for two weeks the 3D showing was completely full (I have never seen that before). There is a very good chance I will be going back just so I can see it in 3D. There are various parts of the film that will really reward you for it, and there was only one moment where I thought it was gratuitously used but you have to forgive every 3D film at least one cheap shot.

Conclusion

Go and see this film, it is as amazing as you have been lead to believe!

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra

Sunday, August 9th, 2009
The official poster does the job but I'd have had Baroness and Scarlett much more prominent

The official poster for G.I. Joe does the job but I'd have had Baroness and Scarlett much more prominent...

G.I. Joe, or Action Force and then G.I. Joe the Action Force as it was known in the UK back in the day has it’s first film out and it’s suffered a lot of negative press and I have to set the record straight here.

It is an excellent popcorn film

You read that right. This film is not without its faults and I’ll get on to those later but first and foremost, this is a fun film.  Well paced action that really deserves to have a sequel (which is cleverly set up at the end).  Seriously, that Transformers Revenge of the Fallen is one of the top 10 movies of all time and this has been somewhat a failure is a mystery of the highest level.

(more…)

Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009
Street Fighter: The Legend of Fail, I mean Chun Li

Street Fighter: The Legend of Fail, I mean Chun Li

The second official live action film based on the Street Fighter video games is possibly the most mediocre action film  I have ever seen.

That said, I will buy it on blu-ray just for the awesomeness of Balrog.

There’s an awful lot wrong with this film from a Street Fighter fan’s point of view but as a stand alone film it’s not bad, just average, from the competant but not great fights to the glory of Balrog and an RPG which really sums up a lot about this film, it shouldn’t really have been called Street Fighter at all really.

Of course there’s also the question, how does it compare to the original live action film?

(more…)

Transformers – Revenge of the Fallen

Sunday, June 14th, 2009

Due to friends with good contacts and one of the best Transformer websites  http://www.transformertoys.co.uk I was privileged to see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen at a special FDA screening at the Odeon cinema in Leicester Square on Friday 12th June. I would have reviewed it sooner but this was an invite only screening and there was a blackout on mentioning it in public until today.

The film was more of the same, the stuff that made the first film awesome is all here and the weak points from the first film are all still here. I’m not going to go into much detail here but there will be some mild spoilers but nothing you probably couldn’t have guessed but don’t read on if you really don’t wanna know.

(more…)