October 1st, 2011 by J

Ok so here we go my top 20 films of the 90’s and believe me this was not an easy choice as there were some great films.

Ones that just missed the cut were by the slimmest of margins so much so i almost made this a top 50. Once again these are my personal favourites not because they are necessarily the best cinematic-ally, best actors or most well known. They all have something i love that draws me back to them.

First some honorable mentions to those who didn’t make the list – Wayne’s World (1992), Casino (1995), Empire Records (1995), Event Horizon (1997), Falling Down (1993), The Fifth Element (1997), Hackers (1995), Point Break (1991), Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) and Pulp Fiction (1994).
Are you sitting comfortably, then Let us begin.

#20 – The 13th Warrior (1999) – Not a great work of cinematic art but a good film with one of the best “overcoming the language barriers i have ever seen in a film.

#19- The Commitments (1991) – Great music, bizarre story.

#18- Dazed and Confused (1993) – Drink, Drugs and coming of age, a great concoction

#17- Saving Private Ryan (1998) – A dubious #18 as the first 20 mins is great and then fluctuates but watchable non the less.

#16- Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999) – I don’t care what anyone says i love Forest Whittaker in this film.

#15 – Philadelphia (1993) – An odd choice i know considering some of the films in this list but i loved it.

#14- Goodfellas (1990) – A great wise guy movie.

#13- Joe’s Apartment (1996) – a very tongue in cheek comedy starring Jerry o’Connell and Megan Ward being upstaged by cockroach’s

#12- Tremors (1990) – If you haven’t seen or don’t know what this films is about then there is no hope for you

#11- The Silence of the Lambs (1991) – The second in Thomas Harris’s four books.

#10- Army of Darkness (1993) – The third in the Evil Dead trilogy and by far the best taking a run of the mill horror film collection into a totally bizarre direction.

#9- Dead Presidents (1995) – I don’t blame you if you missed this movie by the Hughes brothers but you should see it.

#8- As Good as It Gets (1997) – Ok Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt…….I know that’s the noise i made when i read the box but this actually is a fantastic film.

#7 – Reservoir Dogs (1992) – You know you have that tune in your head right now.

#6- Clerks (1994) – Kevin Smiths brilliant low budget movie following the lives of 2 dysfunctional store clerks.

#5- El Mariachi (1993) – This movie was Robert Rodriguez’s awakener and showed him to the world he followed up with two “sequels” Desperado and Once upon a time in Mexico but El Mariachi was the best.

#4- Pushing Tin (1999) – John Cusack and Billie Bob Thornton play two air traffic controllers who develop a feud.

#3- Dark City (1998) – How can i explain this film…..I can i am going to leave it up to IMDb.

#2- The Green Mile (1999) – A wonderful and harrowing movie from the pen of Stephen king.

And now for number one on my list and this was very hard as the top 6 in this list spent quite a while going up and down in position.

#1- Dogma (1999) – Kevin Smiths film about a women with a special heritage trying to prevent two angels (Loki – Matt Damon, Bartleby – Ben Affleck) From reentering heaven and destroying the universe. Jay and Silent bob make there customary appearance as two prophets and With appearances from Chris Rock, Salma Hayek, Alan Rickman and Alanis Morissette this is a great comedy and well worth having in your collection.

Well that’s the lot allow the debate to start.

July 26th, 2011 by J

I will start this by saying that this was a tricky list for me to put together as there loads of films from the 80s that i love and have had to throw away some over others. There is no hard and fast rules as to why all these films fit into my top 20 but all of them have something special that fitted at the time i watched them.

I know there are going to be some disagreements over this list but am happy to hear all views, and then promptly ignore them.

My top 20 of the 80s

#20 Willow (1988) – Don’t know why i just like the film.

#19 Children of the corn (1984) – One of the first films to scare the crap out of me.

#18 This is spinal tap (1984) – Love to turn it up to 11 and find the stage.

#17 Predator (1987)- A little dated now but still a great film and i but you can all (especially the guys) say at least one line from it.

#16 Tron (1982) – What can i say that hasn’t been said already.

#15 Monty Pythons The meaning of life (1983) – One of the more overlooked Monty python films but i love it the most.

#14 Escape from New York (1981) – Snake Plisskin still a great movie name, chuck in Donald Pleasence and you have a great movie.

#13 Dragnet (1987) – (INSERT THEME TUNE)

#12 The Dark Crystal (1982) – Out of all of Jim Hensons work this is still one of my favs.

#11 Videodrome (1983) – Enter Cronenburg weirdness.

Entering the top 10 became a little tricky for positioning but here we go.

#10 Raiders of the lost ark (1981) – Tricky as i like all three and they were all made during the 80s but i had to give in and go with the origonal.

#9 Full Metal Jacket (1987) – Finish the sentence “me love you……”

#8 The Blues Brothers (1980) – As was discussed on a recent outing when asked why we were carrying sunglasses at night? So when the evening has reached an end you can utter the immortal line “It’s 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark… and we’re wearing sunglasses.”

#7 Mad Max 2 (1981) – One of the few films where the sequal was better than the original.

#6 Blade Runner (1982) – The reason that this is not higher is that it is only in later life i have truly grown to appreciate it.

#5 Stir crazy (1980) – Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor at their best.

#4 Flash Gordon (1980) – The soundtrack, The effects, The cast. Whats not to love.

#3 The Thing (1982) – Still one of the best bits of CGI for its time and a great movie for those Friday night movie nights.

#2 Aliens (1986) – A truly outstanding movie. I know that there is always debate between the 1st and 2nd movies and Alien is brilliant but for me Aliens is the better especially for the time. Aliens was only put in the #2 slot because one of my fav films was made in the 80s.

#1 The Lost Boys (1987) – An outstanding film with a great cast of young actors that for me is one that i can watch over and over again. Corey Haim, Kiefer Sutherland and the stunning Jami Gertz are just fantastic. Many may sneer at my choice of #1 but for me at 10 yrs old this was a great film that has stuck with me over the years.

February 10th, 2011 by J

Well i have had my Kindle for a couple of months now and thought i would write a little about it.

Looks and feel 8/10:

From taking it out of the box my first impressions were that it is not as sleek and silky looking as some of the other e-readers on the market. This however deterred me for about 0.5 of a second.

A slightly rough surface gives a good feel to the kindle and i love the placement of the back/forward buttons and the keyboard is very usable. The four way selector is a little bit fiddly but as it is not used a massive amount not a real problem. The action on the buttons is very good and gives you a nice feeling click when used,

Having for so long now got used to electronic devices being in colour, having a device in B/W again is a little odd and the white screen of the kindle took me a few days to get used to.

The Kindle is a nice weight, lighter than you would think but very comfortable to hold and actually quite natural.  Although not “pocket” size the kindle does fit into my inside coat pocket and even into my jeans back pocket although a little tight.

Use 10/10:

There is not a lot i can say about this with out raving although there are a few little niggles that i will go over in a mo. Using the kindle on the bus to and from work has been a joy. The kindle is comfortable to hold and easy to read, as i said above i love the buttons on either side as this allows nicely for commuter cramage. No matter which corner of the bus i am crammed into i can still operate the kindle with either thumb.

There is little or no reflection on the screen which is nice, although so far there have not been any sun scorching days but i have sat reading with an angle poise behind me and suffered no ill effects.

There is however one niggle however that i have personally.  This concerns the length of time it takes to turn off. I understand the idea is to switch it to standby (very quick) however this is not practical if you are using it to and from work and i do find that i have to pre-empt with bus stops at what point i switch it off. Having said this it is not something that is going to effect my life and therefore does not effect my initial score.

What has also held my score is that my father has one and finds it fantastic and as he is barely able to switch on a computer this is a fairly high accolade.

Practical items 9/10:

Getting books – The purchase and download functions from the kindle itself are excellent and very quick (dependent on connection) and the file transfer from computer is a little tricky but very quick to learn.

Battery life – Excellent for commuter use so far i have not charged it since December 12th. and have used it for 1hr, 6 days a week for 2 months (approx 55hrs).

Charging – Very good it took about 2hrs for its initial charge.

Screen size – Excellent just the size i need and with the text size function good for all eyesight’s. I was a little worried however about damage going in and out of my bag so got a nice leather case for Christmas.

Conclusion 9/10:

Overall the Amazon Kindle is a fantastic piece of kit. It’s size, weight and overall dimensions make it great for traveling or that dreaded commute to work.Easy to update and go.

Am i totally sold on ebooks….No!

There is still something about the feel, smell and comfort about a good old paperback book and i will still continue to buy them. however the ease of the kindle means that i can carry more books with me and expand my reading into new realms as i trawl the free books available.

July 29th, 2010 by J

Synopsis:

Clyde Shelton (Gerard Butler) is a brilliant planner and inventor. One night two robbers invade his Philadelphia home and brutally kill his wife and daughter, and almost kill him. The killers are caught, and Assistant DA Nick Rice (Jamie Foxx) is assigned the case. Nick is ordered by the DA to make a deal with one of the killers to testify against his partner for a 10 year plea bargain prison sentence. Clyde doesn’t want the deal made, but Nick says it was too late and the deal is done. The other killer got the death penalty. After 10 years, the other killer is released from prison, and he soon ends up dead. Clyde is arrested and kind of admits to Nick that he did it. Clyde is put in jail, and he warns Nick that he must fix the broken justice system that failed him and his family or else anyone connected to his case will soon die. Even from jail, Clyde’s threats become a reality, and Nick must stop Clyde before his family is next.

All in all this is a good film with a great idea at it’s core, Unfortunately it fails to live up to the expectation. The film starts well with a rather harrowing opening and follows through for about the first half.

This is where it starts to dwindle until the last 20mins where it totally drops it’s game and ends with a total cop out. You find yourself at the beginning siding with Clyde and the injustice that has befallen him and wanting the Asst. DA to understand and feel his pain but it true Hollywood style the need for the happy, good over evil ending triumphs.

Some of the ideas in this film are good and keep you guessing as to what is going on and going to happen next, The action sequences will keep you interested and the acting is up to par. A film i would quite happily watch when on TV but not one i am going to add to the collection.

June 11th, 2010 by J

Synopsis:

The Road follows an father and son journeying together across a grim post-apocalyptic landscape, some years after a great, cataclysm has destroyed civilization and almost all life on Earth. Realizing that they will not survive another winter they head south, through a desolate American landscape, towards the sea. Carrying with them only what is on their backs and what will fit into a damaged supermarket cart.

Grey……

Very Grey.

This film has had all the colour bleached out of it and i love it.

No softly softly approach with this film.

Some time ago i reviewed The book of Eli and i stand by what i said then, The Road has the substance.

A plot description is unnecessary. All you need to know is that a father and son, after becoming on their own after the mother  leaves, are traveling together across a true post-apocalypse landscape to a coast. We never are given a fully clear explanation as to why or how the apocalypse happened, The film centers on the father and son. We are left to draw our own conclusions as to the whys and where fores.

The film gives us many views and observations that are grim and desolate. Some of these are detailed city-scape shots, and are very intimate. The Road also gives us the bond between parent and child and the inconsistencies of life (the “Don’t lie” syndrome”) that is born from not just staying alive but retaining your humanity.

The film is not a popcorn movie and you need to look at is as somthing else.

The direction of the film is fantastic and the acting up to par.  I did worry that at some point during the film i was going to be treated to the Hollywood treatment but greatly pleased that it never came. If i have any minor gripe it would be that the ending was a little weak but still held together to finish the experience.

I have to say experience as i went into this film half expecting to end up watching it with a detachment but ended up totally engrossed. That’s not to say i didn’t feel totally depressed and in need of a serious drink after watching it but i think that is the point.

I am sure that this film will bring out wild and varying reactions from different people but hey thats what film is about.

March 13th, 2010 by J

Synopsis:

Eli (Denzel Washington) has been on a journey for 30 years, walking west across America after a cataclysmic war that turned the earth into a total wasteland. The world has become a lawless civilization where people must kill or be killed. The barren roads belong to gangs of cutthroats who rob and kill for water, a pair of shoes, a lighter, or just for fun. Eli is a peaceful man who only acts in self defense, and becomes a warrior with unbelievable killing skills when he is challenged. After the war and the “Big Flash”, Eli was guided by a higher power to a hidden book and given the task of protecting the book and taking it to its final destination. Eli guards the book with his life, because he knows that the book is the only hope that humanity has for its future.

There seems to be lots of mixed reviews on this film with comparisons to “The Road” (which i will review shortly) I personally feel that this is a Little bit of a Illusionist/Prestige issue. Both good films there was definitely a lean towards the one without all the hype being the better film.

I liked “The book of Eli”, Denzel washington is very good as Eli and plays the role well leaving the ending somewhat of a shock. The visual landscape is quite stunning if not a little gray. This role is very different from others that Denzel has played, There are no police chases and he doesn’t spend a lot of time talking the smooth talk. He does cut of rather a lot of heads however.

It is great to see Gary Oldman as the Villian and lends well to the feel of this film and Mila Kunis is deninatly a welcome sight in amongst all the grubbyness.

There is the General round of Limbs, blood, road gangs and cannibals you would expect to see in any usual Apocalyptic movie but they have tried to keep it to a minimum. The actual end of the film is a very pleasant surprise however a little unbelievable.

In general the film did well and kept my attention, It does have some movement issues in places and seems to falter a bit on some of the action but the Soundtrack definitely won the day for me.

Probably one i will add to the collection when it has been out a little while.

March 10th, 2010 by J

synopsis:

Set in the present day, director Terry Gilliam’s fantastical morality tale follows the traveling show of the mysterious Dr. Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) — a man who once won a bet with the Devil himself, and possesses the unique ability to guide the imagination of others. Many centuries ago, Dr. Parnassus won immortality in a bet that found the malevolent Mr. Nick (Tom Waits) coming up short. While few would be foolish enough to try their luck against the powers of darkness a second time, Dr. Parnassus did precisely that — this time trading his mortality for youth on the understanding that his firstborn would become the property of Mr. Nick when the child reaches his or her 16th birthday. 

 While the sudden death of prominent IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS player Heath Ledger in January of 2008 left Gilliam and company scrambling to find a means of salvaging the film — which was already well into principal photography at the time — the cavalry soon arrived in the form of Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell, who each serve as alternate-dimension versions of the character originally set to be played by Ledger when the character crosses through a paranormal mirror.

I would like to say in advance the i am a great fan of Terry Gilliams work and do like Heath Ledger in most things i have seen so Apologies in advance for what I am about to divulge. I am going to be completely honest with my review and how I perceived this movie.

I wanted this movie to be epic! Terry Gilliam, A complete wacky, bonkers, mind bending bonker of cgi-scape to play with, a bonkers story, a great cast. What could go wrong.

Apparently everything……..
I was bored, embarrassed and found it all rather painful and extremely hard work.  There is only one film in all that i have watched that i have ever walked out of (you know who you are battlefield earth) but i came pretty close with this one.

The plot is a fairly simple Pact with devil for first born affair with the twist that the good DR can put people into there imaginations, Enter wild nonsense…. Not really it all felt a little flat and just not what i was expecting. There were a couple of moments that were nice touches but on the whole i was left scratching my head and thinking “is that it?” or “come on get to the point”

The slight saving grace with the film was the excellent actors that replaced Heath after his death and some of the CGI. This however did not save the film.

The cast themselves don’t really do anything wrong and there are some good performances it is just that the story sort of lumbers along and peeters out.

This will not be one i am adding to my collection even at the £9.99 price that Amazon are selling it for.

March 3rd, 2010 by J

Synopsis:

Dominic Sena’s adaptation of the graphic novel series by Greg Rucka.

U.S. Marshall Carrie Stetko (Kate Beckinsale) has been stationed at Antarctica’s South Pole research base for two years, and now after turning in her resignation she’s looking forward to finally going home. The last plane out leaves in just three days, and just after that Antarctica will not see the sun again for another 24 weeks. Then, just 72 hours before she is set to escape the coming darkness, a body is discovered in the ice — prompting the first murder investigation ever to take place on the desolate Antarctic Circle continent. Little does Carrie realize that she’s suddenly been thrust into a mystery over 60 years in the making, and that the killer is ready to strike again in order to protect a grim secret.

‘Whiteout’ is a sort of “US Marshall’s”/horror/Murder mystery on ice. It was panned by the critics and was a box-office flop, Which gave me all the reason i needed to see it

The movie is based in Antarctica and follows a U.S. Marshal played by Kate Beckinsale who after discovering a murder, attempts to hunt down the killer in a pretty basic plot. There is however a nice little twist in the tail that i must admit i wasn’t expecting.

The film has a good cast and the director, Dominic Sena, previously made ‘Gone in Sixty Seconds’, which I enjoyed.
There is the usual action beginning which sets the mood and Then it continues to unfold in a formulaic manner. This did surprisingly keep my attention with just enough of the “weeel we shall see where this goes” factor to keep me interested for the duration. 

Set to the backdrop of Antarctica the scenery is stunning and very well shot. The climax, when it came did surprise me and the movie as a whole sort of worked. It kept me interested and gave me what I had expected, an unpredictable ending.

Don’t get me wrong there are flaws and the movie offers nothing new when it comes to plot and the acting is not the best.

‘Whiteout’ is one of those movies that you should not expect much from and in return will be rewarded, I would put it on my “one to watch on a rainy Sunday eve” list but don’t think i shall be adding it to the DVD collection.

December 24th, 2009 by J

Synopsis:

With only three weeks left in his three year contract, Sam Bell is getting anxious to finally return to Earth. He is the only occupant of a Moon-based manufacturing facility along with his computer and assistant, GERTY. The long period of time alone however has resulted in him talking to himself for the most part, or to his plants. Direct communication with Earth is not possible due to a long-standing communication malfunction but he does get an occasional message from his wife Tess. When he has an accident however, he wakens to find that he is not alone. He also comes to realize that his world is not what he thought it was.

Ok so there are not too many possibilities for where this film could go, but when i first saw this film being promoted i was very interested. Not just because i liked the look of it and it being an English film but also because it was directed by Duncan Jones (David Bowies son) and knew it was going to be a little trippy.

The look is actually very good, Slick white walled (2001 style) space center and technology but all looking a little grubby with lots of nice little touches to indicate that all is not right or older than it seems.  Sams isolation has made him more attached to memories of his life on earth and there are very few movies that have expressed it so well ”in isolation, nothing really means anything”. Kevin Spacey as well was a great choice as GERTY and this film does feel like it has been taken time over rather than a Hollywood “burn em and churn em”.

One i will be buying.

December 14th, 2009 by J

Neil Marshall does it again, The Director of Dog Soldiers has produced another great movie. I think one IMDB review said it best with the line

“A fun but deliberately dumb movie with nothing original”

I would agree with that.

Synopsis:

In an apocalyptic vision of the future, authorities brutally quarantine Scotland as it succumbs to fear and chaos when a virus strikes. The literal walling-off works for three decades – until the dreaded Reaper virus violently resurfaces in London. An elite group of specialists, captained by Eden Sinclair (Rhona Mitra), is urgently dispatched into the still-quarantined country to retrieve a cure by any means necessary.

I have to admit that I love this film. It is very much a “Escape from new york”/”Mad max” mash up and like these two films needs some suspension of disbelief to work but it has its moments. The lead played by the beautiful Rhona Mitra (Underworld: Rise of the Lycans) definitely adds a touch of glam to the proceedings. Sean Pertwee makes an appearance as one of the Dr’s and dies in a fantastically bizarre scene at a public BBQing. There are some other great appearances from Bob Hoskins and Malcome McDowell.

The use of a 2008 Bentley Continental GT Speed in the inevitable chase scene against Mad Max style cars and trucks is just one of the very bizarre moments in this film that make it worth buying. Also at £5 from Amazon worth it for a rainy afternoon.