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Collateral
Collateral is another film I've watched by accident. This happens; I want to watch a film, I find there's nothing available to
downloadrent, so I pick something I've at least heard of, and give it a go. This time around, it turned out to be a good choice. → -
The Shape of Things to Come
With 2004 nearly over, and fewer opportunities to be disappointed by awful films that promise much yet deliver little this year, I thought I'd have a look ahead to see what's in store. →
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Resident Evil: Apocalypse
After having reminded myself of Paul W.S. Anderson's lack of any cinematic ability with Aliens Vs. Predator, I went into Resident Evil: Apocalypse knowing that, what with Paul W.S. Anderson being both writer and producer, there was a very strong possibility that it would be dreadful. And guess what? It was! →
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Bubba Ho-Tep
When considering a film that features an elderly Elvis Presley battling a mummy in a Texan retirement home, aided by a black John F. Kennedy, the question that springs to mind should not be "Why would anybody make a film like this?”, but rather "Why has nobody made this film before?" →
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Aliens Vs. Predator
14 years we've been waiting for this film. 14 years since Stephen Hopkins thought it'd be a bit of a giggle to include an Alien skull in Predator 2. That one clip spawned comic books, novels, videogames, scripts, rumours --- a whole industry dedicated to the idea of the Alien and the Predator facing off and having a bit of a barney. 14 years. And what do we get to show for it, finally, 14 years on? We get a derivative rip-off of The Thing and Jurassic Park. Come in, Paul Anderson, your time is up. →
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Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
Although this film looks wonderful, I suggest that you don't see it at the cinema. Instead, wait until it comes out on DVD, buy it, and then every Saturday morning, allow yourself to watch about 20--30 minutes of it. If you want to watch a homage to ’30s pulp SF serials, then you really should do it properly. →
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Review of David Twohy’s The Chronicles of Riddick
The Australian-produced, low-profile Pitch Black that launched Vin Diesel's career did not need a sequel. It was a great film — a simple idea (a hostile world, plunged into darkness), a straightforward plot (get some supplies, get off the planet before the lights go out), and a clever hook (the only one who can see in the dark is the murdering psychopath they've brought with them) — but it was also a film that had very definitely finished. Diesel's Riddick developed a mini-conscience and saved some people instead of leaving them to die. He'd grown as a person, you see? →
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The Village
After Sixth Sense, Unbreakable and Signs, M. Night Shyamalan brings us a story that's never quite sure what it's trying to be. As a horror film, it fails to be scary; as a thriller, it fails to thrill, as a mystery it fails to elicit intrigue and as a love story it fails to engage the emotions. Is there anything that the film succeeds in? →
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I, Robot
I had mixed reactions upon hearing that there was to be a film based upon Isaac Asimov's collection of short stories. On the one hand, I love the original stories, and Alex Proyas was directing, but on the other hand, the film was to star Will Smith, which meant that there was no way that this film would be any good at all. →
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Hellboy
Hellboy has now joined my collection of films that are based upon comic books which I've never read. It joins Daredevil, Hulk, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and, er, Supergirl. Now, there's a line-up!
Compare it with my list of films that are based upon comic books that I have read; X-Men, Batman, Spiderman---a smaller collection, but one with significantly better films (discounting Joel Schumacher's efforts, of course). Will Hellboy stand with pride in the latter collection, or will it shuffle it's feet quietly with the flawed/awful works in the former?
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Azkaban, Revisited
There's a worthwhile article at Culture Snob discussing the recent Harry Potter film release and a wider look at the series:
"Unfortunately, I fear it will become the series' The Empire Strikes Back — the pinnacle that shows the bankruptcy of the rest of the entries. And for that, we should thank the good executives at Warner Brothers."
Nice bit of Columbus-bashing as well, which I always approve of.
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Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban
I admit quite freely to loving the Harry Potter series of books, and any criticisms of them always seemed a bit weak to me. Yes, they’re children’s books, and as such are not the most challenging texts you’ll ever read, but is that really so bad? Surely it’s better that people – adults and children alike – are reading any book than reading none at all? →
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Troy
Even if you've never read the original poems, you know about the horse. The wooden horse, complete with air holes, hinges, and mysterious voices from within muttering "ouch!" whenever they went over a rock. It's absurd, and if the Trojans really did fall for it, then they deserved whatever they got. →