In the late 1980s action films were the main consumption for the male demographic. Before comic book films and endless big-budget, 3D fantasy battles cornered the market, these shots of pure testosterone-fuelled adrenaline were king. Whether it Arnie in The Terminator, or Sly Stallone in Rambo, large muscle-bound actors saw huge box office returns simply for driving cars fast, … [Read more...]
Review: Con Air (1997)
[pullquote cite="" type="left, right"][amazon text=Amazon&template=carousel&chan=that film guy&asin=B000PI3UEK][/pullquote] The late 1990s was an interesting time for the action film sub-genre. Mainstays of the genre were getting older and actors like Schwarzenegger, Stallone and Willis were trying their hand at different styles of film. The world needed someone new … [Read more...]
Review: The Lucky One (2012)
Its 2012 and Zac Efron is older and wiser. Now trying to leave the horrific High School Musical persona in the past, his eyes are on the future. The Lucky One is the key to showing any doubters, myself included, that he is far more capable of producing a worthy feature film than previously thought. Apologies Mr. Efron I retract all negative comments from the past couple of … [Read more...]
Review: The Decoy Bride (2012)
The Decoy Bride, written by Sally Phillips of Smack the Pony and I'm Alan Partridge fame is a low-budget UK romantic comedy. It stars former Dr. Who David Tennant and Boardwalk Empire star Kelly MacDonald. Made for a tiny £2.5m it has failed to make its money back at the box office based on a very limited release (only 1 screen in the US) and was released on DVD and blu-ray 3 … [Read more...]
Review: Commando (1985)
The ex-Governor of California has many personas that the entire globe now recognise. From bodybuilding to acting, Arnie, as we know him, moulded himself into a Hollywood Star after leaving his home country of Austria. With willpower and determination he formed a career that is one and the same where Action films are concerned. Commando (1985) remains one of his most well known … [Read more...]
Review: The Fugitive (1993)
In the 1960s, the television show The Fugitive was hugely popular. This lead to a rather nostalgic modernisation in 1993, when Harrison Ford took on the role of the eponymous fugitive, Dr. Richard Kimble. After seeing Under Siege, Ford decided that he wanted to work with the director Andrew Davis, who he thought could bring the thrilling action film to life. This proved a … [Read more...]
Review: Delicatessen (1991, France)
Jean-Pierre Jeunet is famous, above all, for Amélie. To an extent, the rest of his work has been overshadowed by this one film. And it's easy to see why “ it was after all, a huge popular and critical success, won a bunch of Césars (the French equivalent of the Oscars), launched Audrey Tautou's career, boosted Montmartre's tourist industry and has been endlessly copied, … [Read more...]
Review: Under Siege (1992)
When you think of action films, the first names to pop in your head are probably Schwarzenegger, Willis and Stallone. Then if you think a little harder you probably come across Snipes, Chan, Van Damme and the king of the ˜straight-to-DVD Bargain Bin' action film, Steven Seagal. Now a man better known for his expanding wasteline than his explosive moves, it wasn't always the way … [Read more...]
Review: Highlander II: The Quickening (1991)
Highlander II: The Quickening is a pretty much perfect example of how to take a good idea and a good film and throw it all in the bin. Highlander's tagline was There can be only one, and by the end of the film, there was only one Immortal left, so where could a sequel possibly go? Why would we want one? And yet, for some inexplicable reason, here we are. … [Read more...]
Review: Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (2012)
Based on a successful novel of the same name by Paul Torday, the improbably titled Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is a romantic drama comedy directed by Lasse Hallstrom. Based on a screenplay by Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours), Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is as charming as it's vistas of Scotland and Yemen that it presents. It was partially funded by a grant from … [Read more...]