With a total running time of over four hours, it was decided that Kill Bill, Quentin Tarantino's eclectic homage to everything from the golden era of Hong Kong Kung-Fu cinema to Sergio Leone-style spaghetti westerns, was to be cut into two halves. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 focuses more on the martial art genre (the dusty, lazy vibes of the small-town south come to the fore in Part 2), … [Read more...]
Review: Point Break (1991)
[pullquote cite="" type="left, right"][amazon text=Amazon&template=carousel&chan=that film guy&asin=B004MW57HS][/pullquote] To pigeon-hole Point Break would be to call it an undercover-surfing-crime-drama-action film, and while that sounds ridiculous, it is an accurate way to describe what on paper should be a ridiculous film. Director Kathryn Bigelow was given the … [Read more...]
Review: Contraband (2012)
Contraband is a remake of the 2008 Icelandic film ReykjavÃk-Rotterdam. ReykjavÃk-Rotterdam was Iceland's official submission into the Oscars 2010 for Best Foreign Film. Of course, it wasn't actually nominated, but it enjoyed great success and critical acclaim in Iceland. Critics in the US (or at the least the ones that reviewed it) were not so impressed. … [Read more...]
Review: 21 Jump Street (2012)
[pullquote cite="" type="left, right"][amazon text=Amazon&template=carousel&chan=that film guy&asin=B00JWSVLJK][/pullquote] 21 Jump Street was an iconic American police procedural show in the late 1980s and early 1990s that is best known for launching the career of main star Johnny Depp. In an age where any and all TV shows and films are considered ripe for … [Read more...]
Review: Safe House (2012)
Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington) is a rogue CIA agent who is attempting to sell some calssified documents to the highest bidder. After being pursued a group of less-than-savoury characters through the streets of Johannasburg, South Africa, he opts to hand himself in to the US embassy and is imediately taken to a safe house, where rookie agent Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds) is … [Read more...]
Review: Rampart (2012)
When Martin Scorsese released Taxi Driver in 1976, he invited the film-going audience into the head of a sensational character. Travis Bickle, played to perfection by method genius Robert De Niro, has become one of the most socially inept, borderline sociopathic and iconic monsters in film history. Dave Brown (Woody Harrelson), the focal point of Oren Moverman's Rampart is … [Read more...]
Review: Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Quentin Tarantino is now an established director in Hollywood, having had a string of commercial and critical success', the release of his films are treated with a similar sense of anticipation as those of Ridley Scott and Martin Scorsese. This, however, was not always the case. In 1992 he released his first feature length film, that he also wrote called Reservoir Dogs. From a … [Read more...]
Review: The Town (2010)
When Ben Affleck first turned his hand to writing his own film he came up with the amazingly brilliant Good Will Hunting (along with buddy and co-star Matt Damon). Many years later he directs and plays a part in writing The Town (2010), casting himself as the lead Doug MacRay, with Jeremy Renner as his right hand man James (Jem) Coughlin. Rebecca Hall features as Affleck's … [Read more...]
Review: The Departed (2006)
When Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Wahlberg and Matt Damon are cast in a film together, you know it's going to be a first-rate production. Nothing less can be said about The Departed (2006), Martin Scorsese once again hit the nail on the head with his multiple Oscar winner. Set in the tired and troublesome areas of South Boston and Charlestown, Massachusetts. 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...]