Charlie And The Chocolate Factory ; I'd not seen Burton version of Dahl's book until watching it on the telly the other week. The film looked great, the production design of the various factory rooms was brilliantly imaginative as once the styling of the family's house.
Depp's Wonka was a bit of a strange creation, channeling Jacko unmistakeably and adding a layer of sentiment to the character. However the performance wasn't has strong as it could be, Gene Wilder's Wonka dominates the screen whenever he's on but Depp's did not grab the attention in the same way. The supporting cast were fine but not outstanding. Overall it was decent but something that fadded quickly from the memory once over.
Clash Of The Titans : The update of the old sandal and stop motion epic was like the above a fun piece of entertainment whilst it was on but nothing that lingers with you. Sam Worthington was the same as he is in every other role I've seen him in, Gemma Arterton looked stunning but was sadly left with a role that made her Miss Exposition. Elsewhere Fiennes caught the eye with a good creepy turn as Hades.
A couple of really effective sequences exist in the film (giant scorpions, Medusa's lair) but sadly the final climatic appearance of the Kraken was underwhelming and rather a anticlimax.
The Hangover : Watched on DVD the other week this breakout comedy hit of 2009 is a great little "bromance" comedy as three friends pull together to find thier soon to be married friend after a hellish night out in Las Vegas. It takes familiar scenarios but does put it's own spin on things with Bradley Cooper as a likable lead and Zach Galifianakis in particular providing excellent support in the crazy mate role. Perhaps not the work of genius made out by a lot of others but still a very amusing watch.
Land Of The Lost ; Will Ferrel's update of the TV show is a strange one indeed. Seemingly pitched as a family comedy but packed full of jokes that would take a lot of red faced explaining from parents to the younger ones the audience. Still it does have a couple of chucklsome moments and the final pay off joke is almost worth the previous ninety odd minutes alone.
Kick-Ass : This was simply great. An imaginative and stylish pastiche of the superhero genre which like all good pastiches celebrates it's target as much as it pokes fun. Matthew Vaughan brings Mark Miller's comic book to vibrate stylish life (with help from Jane Goldman) packed with laugh out loud moments, pulsating action set pieces (a sequence inside a dark warehouse late on is a real standout) and genuine heart. Highly recommended and the it's one where I'm more than pleased to hear the cast are already signed up for two more outings.
So there you go, that's what I've been watching recently
2 comments:
But how did you feel about Burton's oompa loompas? Sure the old inaccurate ones were odd, but they had some catchy tunes and dance moves. Burton's whilst closer to the book, were down right malevolent.
They were quite sinister I thought. The old ones always felt a bit more playful.
But I did get a little distracted about wondering how the oompa loompa society worked if they were all the same.
Post a Comment