In 1997 director Barry Sonnenfeld, fresh off the success of adapting the classic TV shot The Addams Family, turned his attentions to the world of comic books and a little known title called The Men in Black. Casting Hollywood A-listers Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones as the central duo paid dividends as their natural on-screen chemistry helped propel Men in Black to a box office … [Read more...]
Act of Valor (2012) review by That Film Guy
Early 2012 saw the release of Act of Valor, a film involving a team of US Navy Seals sent on a variety of missions to rescue captured allies, eliminate enemies of the USA and generally just be Navy Seals. Act of Valor's unique selling point is that it stars real Navy Seals as opposed to actors and highlights the real tactics used by them when in the field. It is truly a novel … [Read more...]
Children of Men (2006) review by That Film Guy
Dystopian futures are one of the most well-realised forms of science fiction in literature and film. From George Orwell's iconic 1984 all the way to films like The Road Warrior, the idea that we, as a species will inevitably destroy our own civilisation have fascinated and engaged us for decades. In 2006 Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron, fresh off dragging Harry Potter and the … [Read more...]
Jeff, Who Lives at Home (2012) review by That Art House Guy
Jeff Who Lives at Home is the latest movie from the Duplass brothers. The brothers are a part of school of film-making that has been named ˜mumblecore' “ while not a conscious movement, it's a term that has been used to group together a number of American independent films and filmmakers. Key characteristics include low budgets and production values and a naturalistic dialogue … [Read more...]
Stargate (1994) review by That Film Guy
It is now common place for successful television shows to be given an outing on the big screen. Everything from The Inbetweeners to On the Buses have seen their small screen characters taking on the silver screen, all with varying quality. Rarer to find however is feature films that have forgone a sequel and instead moved the narrative onto television. The most successful of … [Read more...]
Review: Watchmen (2009)
[pullquote cite="" type="left, right"][amazon text=Amazon&template=carousel&chan=that film guy&asin=B00450AGFA][/pullquote] Generally considered one of the best and most influential comic books ever written, Watchmen was one of those things that no one ever really expected to see turned into a film, not least because it was in development hell for twenty years … [Read more...]
Potiche (2010, France) review by That Art House Guy
Since his breakthrough movie Sitcom in 1998, writer / director François Ozon's movies have been anything but ordinary. Sitcom itself was a pitch black comedy featuring suicide, incest and a magic rat (no, really), and he followed that up with films such as Swimming Pool and Under the Sand “ both extremely intense psychodramas. In 2003 he convinced almost every leading French … [Read more...]
The Raid (2012, Indonesian) review by That Film Guy
There are some films that do exactly what you expect them to. Contraband was always going to be a by-the-numbers thriller, The Lucky One was always going to be an emotionally manipulative 'love story' and The Raid was always going to be a bog-standard martial arts film. The thing is, it isn't. At all. … [Read more...]
The Dictator (2012) review by That Film Guy
Having made a name for himself in the late 1990s as part of The 9 O'clock News team and latterly with his own show, Sacha Baron Cohen's list of characters have each gone on to star in their own self-titled films. Starting with Ali G in Da House, which was an irreverent and fictional look at youth culture at the time. The phenomenally successful Borat followed and then Bruno, … [Read more...]
Die Hard (1988) review by That Film Guy
The 1980s brought a rejuvenation in the very definition of action films. The likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone and Steven Seagal released huge commercial success after huge commercial success playing alpha males who could fight their way out of any situation. In the Christmas of 1988, one actor, with no background in action helped create one of the most iconic … [Read more...]