The Underworld franchise kicked off in 2003, made by studio Lakeshore Entertainment, starring Kate Beckinsale as a black leather clad vampire, Selene. Based on the trailers and the looks of the star, it became a hit among teenage boys and took over $90m from a budget of $22m, which set the wheels in motion for a series that releases a film every 3 years like clockwork. The … [Read more...]
Review: SUPER (2010)
Films based on comic books, notably superheroes, have seen an explosion in popularity in recent years. Along with adaptations of the most famous titles, the last few years have seen a new sub-genre appear, those of the pseudo-heroes. Films such as Kick-Ass and Defendor have taken the conventions of the comic book genre and toyed with various elements to create a more … [Read more...]
Review: The Sitter (2012)
Jonah Hill is a talented comic actor whose career has seen him star in a host of Judd Apatow produced films and writer and performing on the legendary US TV show Saturday Night Live. His breakout performance was as a foul-mouthed teenager in Superbad and since then his career has moved in a steady trajectory with films such as Get Him to the Greek and in 2011 he gave his best … [Read more...]
Review: The Three Musketeers (2011)
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas is one of the most adapted books to film in history. When Paul W.S. Anderson decided to create a new version in 2011 it was the 21st adaptation of the famous novel. Known for his work on the Resident Evil series, Anderson was clearly looking for a new franchise to continue his trend of producing low quality, high-earning films. From a … [Read more...]
Review: Haywire (2012)
Haywire can only be described as 007 meets Jason Bourne but for females. A surprisingly quiet promotional campaign for an A-List cast featuring Michael Douglas, Channing Tatum, Antonio Banderas, Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender and Bill Paxton is very odd. What is even more unusual is the lead, Gina Carano, a Mixed Martial Arts expert and World Extreme Fighter. Relatively … [Read more...]
Review: Yamada: The Samurai of Ayutthaya (2010, Thai)
Yamada: The Samurai of Ayutthaya is a historical martial arts movie, based (rather loosely perhaps) on the life real life figure of Yamada Nagamasa. Yamada was a Japanese Samurai who ended up in Siam (modern day Thailand) after his lord was defeated in battle and he was forced to leave his homeland. In the period in which the film is set, the early 17th century, there was a … [Read more...]
Review: Pulp Fiction (1994)
In 1992 Quentin Tarantino introduced himself to the world with his directorial debut Reservoir Dogs. Notable for its unusual take on a heist film, set as it is before and after but with no footage of the actual event, the film became a huge critical success and took $14m from a budget of $1.4m. This success lead to him receiving funding for his next project, co-written by his … [Read more...]
Review: Trollhunter (2010, Norwegian)
When film-maker Andre Ovredal wrote the screenplay for The Troll Hunter he based it on a single comment from Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg about the true existence of Trolls and how pylons were actually fences to keep them in trapped. It's a wonderful little moment that none of the gathered press at the conference picked up on and when taken out of context creates … [Read more...]
Review: The Panama Deception (1992)
As an 8 year old at the time of the US invasion of Panama in 1989, I have to confess to having been completely unaware of the subject matter of this 1992 Oscar winning documentary prior to sitting down to view it. Directed by Barbara Trent who's IMDB resumé only runs to four feature films, all of which cover countries in central America, it is a very one sided piece once it … [Read more...]
Review: War Horse (2012)
Based on the 1982 children's novel by Michael Morpurgo, War Horse charts the life of a horse born and raised in Devon who gets drafted into military service. It was initially adapted into a highly successful stage play before Steven Spielberg announced his intentions to turn it into a Hollywood film. Hiring Richard Curtis and Lee Hall to write the screenplay, Spielberg himself … [Read more...]