Following the departure of Sean Connery in the lead role, the producers of the James Bond films looked to replace him with an actor who was equally as good-looking and charismatic for the next film On Her Majesty's Secret Service. Their choice was the face of Big Fry Chocolate, the male model George Lazenby. It would be a choice that at the time was wildly unpopular and caused … [Read more...]
Resident Evil: Retribution (2012) review by That Film Geek
Resident Evil: Retribution is the fifth film in the video game spin-off series which again follows Alice (Milla Jovovich) as she battles against the evil Umbrella corporation. Again directed Paul W. S. Anderson, this film picks up right where Resident Evil Afterlife left off, on a ship full of freed human test subjects, being approached by umbrella attack helicopters led by a … [Read more...]
Tower Block (2012) review by That Film Doctor
With the release of The Raid and Dredd in recent weeks, it seems that there is something about the high rise skyscraper as a setting for tense action films. Ever since The Towering Inferno and then Die Hard, the claustrophobia of a high-rise building as fascinated film makers. … [Read more...]
Looper (2012) review by That Film Guy
Director Rian Johnson began his career with the language-muddling high school film noir Brick, before moving on to the con-man film The Brothers Bloom, yet his third film, arguably his best, is a science fiction time-travel action film called Looper. Creating an original, but familiar location of near-future Earth, Johnson is able to place interesting characters with a complex … [Read more...]
You Only Live Twice (1967) review by That Film Guy
Originally slated to be the final appearance of Sean Connery in the lead role, You Only Live Twice was the fifth James Bond film in the franchise. Featuring one of the largest sets ever created for film, it was a commercial and critical success during its original release taking $111m at the box office from a budget of $10m. You Only Live Twice would be the first film in the … [Read more...]
Taken 2 (2012) review by That Film Fatale
When the insanely brilliant Taken was released to Box Office, Liam Neeson became THE action man. The infamous I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you became so legendary that Mr. Neeson now refuses to recite those exact words. Neeson who is often undervalued, proved his worth with that project but the time has come for him to fend off the bad guys once more. … [Read more...]
The Three Musketeers (2011) review by That Film Toad
The Three Musketeers (originally a book by Alexandre Dumas) is indisputably a classic work, which has stood the test of time and continues to draw readers back to 17th century France. Such a leviathan of literature is, in short, well outside the scope of a reviewer who likes feasting on film-tastrophes. So imagine my surprise when Paul W.S Anderson stepped up to the plate and … [Read more...]
Die Hard 4.0 (2007) review by The Documentalist
It is twelve years on from the last time that the iconic John McClane (Bruce Willis) found himself with a front row seat to yet another terrorist attack and things have changed. No longer a young(ish) family man with a full head of hair, McClane is now a balding, crotchety 40-something estranged from his wife and daughter and following orders as an NYPD detective. … [Read more...]
Thunderball (1965) review That Film Guy
The production of Thunderball, the fourth film in the James Bond canon is one riddled with conflict, disagreement and indirectly led to the creation of Never Say Never Again, the Bond film that wasn't quite Bond. Author Ian Fleming and co-writer Kevin McClory fell into dispute in 1961 over whom owned the rights to the Thunderball script. McClory insisted that he had co-written … [Read more...]
Goldfinger (1964) review by That Film Guy
No James Bond film better epitomises the mass appeal of Britain's coolest spy than the third instalment in the franchise, Goldfinger. A huge critical and commercial juggernaut, Goldfinger would create the template from which most future films would draw their inspiration and it marked the characters transition from simple thriller to iconic blockbuster draw. Based on a novel by … [Read more...]