Based on real-life events and the improbable story of the rescue of on-the-run US embassy workers in Iran in the late-1970s, Argo stars and is directed by Ben Affleck and co-produced by George Clooney. In many ways Affleck's acting career has a similar trajectory to Clooney's and it's interesting to see their directorial careers continue this similarity. Both started as … [Read more...]
Hotel Transylvania (2012) review by That Film Guy
Sandwiched between two of the years other big animated films in Paranorman and Frankenweenie comes the Adam Sandler-voice starring Hotel Transylvania. Much like the two excellent films around it, Hotel Transylvania takes horror mythology and turns it into a dramatic comedy for kids. Set within the eponymous establishment, Hotel Transylvania follows owner Dracula (Sandler) who … [Read more...]
Frankenweenie (2012) review by That Film Guy
Director Tim Burton has a history of making films about social outcasts and characters who learn that it's ok to be different. Frankenweenie, based on a short film he created early in his career when working at Disney, which was rejected for being too dark. It acts as almost an overview of all of his previous canonical works and provides an open-minded look at the pressures of … [Read more...]
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000, Taiwan) review by That Film Dude
Martial arts films had been big business in China for decades, but they never really caught on in a big way overseas until relatively recently. The Matrix drew a great deal of influence from the style of Hong Kong action cinema, and proved fairly conclusively that there was a market for these sorts of films in English speaking countries; and so a new wave of martial arts epics … [Read more...]
Carancho (2010, Argentina) review by That Art House Guy
Work on Carancho (which translates as The Vulture) was completed in 2010. Despite being selected as Argentina's entry for Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards (though it didn't make the final shortlist), and being entered at Cannes, the movie only arrived in UK cinemas on a limited release in 2012. … [Read more...]
Carrie (1976) review by That Film Guy
Stephen King is one of the most famous authors in horror and latterly fantasy fiction. His books and short stories have been adapted into a variety of Hollywood films including IT, The Shawshank Redemption, Pet Cemetery and The Green Mile. The first adaptation of his work came in 1976 when Brian De Palma has handed the reigns over King's first ever novel Carrie. A huge … [Read more...]
Undefeated (2011) review by That Film Guy
Directed by Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin, Undefeated is a documentary that tells the story of the 2009 Manassas Tigers high school football team from Memphis, Tennessee. Head coach Bill Courtney attempts to lead his team, centred around a group of seniors who he has been training for years, on a winning season for the first time in decades in hopes of taking them to the … [Read more...]
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) review by That Film Dude
The film adaptation of Richard O'Brien's stage musical, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, is one of the weirdest, campest films ever made; the longest running cinema release in history, still playing today; a loving parody of classic science fiction and horror; and some of the best fun you can have with any film. … [Read more...]
The Howling (1981) review by That Film Geek
I had a theory that classic werewolf films were released every 20 years, starting in 1941 with Universal's classic 'The Wolfman' with Lon Chaney jr. as the afflicted lycanthrope, through 1961 with Hammer's 'Curse of the Werewolf' with Oliver Reed as the snarling lead. 1981 followed this trend with An American Werewolf in London, when David Naughton tore up London and the … [Read more...]
Skyfall (2012) review by That Film Guy
With the legal wranglings finished and the shonky Quantum of Solace left firmly in the past, the film-makers at EON made their intent clear during pre-production. On the 50th anniversary of the franchise, they wanted a James Bond film of such quality that it would do what no predecessor has managed and bag nominations in the big categories at the Oscars. So the stakes are high … [Read more...]