★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Wednesday, 24 July 2013
The World's End (2013) - Edgar Wright
Second viewing. Just as good. I noticed slightly more stuff this time, for example the noise from the fruit machine used in Shaun of the Dead (2004) and a few references to games of chess. I spotted Gary King, Andy Knightley and another character had the last name of Prince. Eddie Marsan's character lived at Bishop's Gardens, or something of the sort. I will try and look out for more on repeat viewing.
Tuesday, 23 July 2013
Dawn of the Dead (1978) - George A. Romero
Probably the best zombie film ever made. Genuinely a brilliant film about consumerism. The two hours flies by.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Friday, 19 July 2013
The World's End (2013) - Edgar Wright
Nine years. Nine long years. It has been nine years since Shaun of the Dead (2004) first came out. It has been nine years that I have waited for the trilogy's finale to come out, so in my review, I will do my best to do it justice, but remember, this is a fan boy's perspective, so could be a little (a lot) biased.
So, to start with, let's get this out of the way... I was NOT disappointed. That's right, ladies and gents (all one of my followers; I know who you are), this movie did not leave me wanting more. It was a worthy completion, and I am still unsure on which of the blood and ice cream trilogy is the best and not so best.
Hot Fuzz (2007) feels like the odd one out to me, due its more realistic nature than the other two (no matter how much I believe in zombies) and lack of apocalyptic themes, but I suppose The World's End could be, due to its reliance on Simon Pegg to be the Funny One, as apposed to Nick Frost playing the slacker with the best lines in Dead and Fuzz. Don't get me wrong, he is good in this, brilliant in fact, but in the other two, he was always the show stealer. The other three co-drinkers in TWE also seem to set this apart from the others due to Fuzz and Shaun being solely based on those two actors and their adventures (not counting Liz, who is (being honest) just there as rom-com fodder-I don't even agree with myself there, because Shaun of the Dead is such a perfect movie; I'm just making a point, shush) whereas this film concentrates a lot on the protagonist (who is often also the antagonist to himself, as in the others) and his relationship with his friends.
It was nice to see Paddy Considine as kind of a lovelorn character instead of his usual gritty self. He seemed to take quite a central role. Is this a step in the direction his career is going? Uphill and onwards to uber fame (better than regular fame, not as good as superstardom)? With roles in films like this, and more directing work, it's a definite possibility! The same can be said for Eddie Marsan and Martin Freeman, who are both becoming more familiar in both American and British films.
I did expect more lines to be quotable and more throwbacks to Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead, but the film itself didn't lose anything by not having them. The fence part (not a spoiler, it's in the advert), where Simon Pegg jumps a fence and it falls down, was needed for old times sake, even if it does seem a little pointless. The ending was differently done to the other two as well, no fade out and then fade back in a while later, like at the end of Fuzz and Dead, which I kind of pined for. I won't make a list of everything that was missing, because there was a lot, but I was not disappointed with this. They weren't flaws. If I'd gone and seen what I had expected, I probably wouldn't have been as surprised and as happy with it.
I am seeing it again soon, so look for a future review, picking the film apart in more detail. It saddens me to think that such a great trilogy of films is over, but does it really have to be? Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright could write another one! They're both young and approaching high points in their careers; that doesn't mean that the trilogy couldn't become a series for the imaginative duo. With The World's End as a conclusion, they have alleviated any pressure that was on them for a brilliant and beautiful finale. And for that, I congratulate them, and just as a fan, for not disappointing (are you reading this Christopher Nolan, cough, The Dark Knight Rises (2012) cough?).
So, to start with, let's get this out of the way... I was NOT disappointed. That's right, ladies and gents (all one of my followers; I know who you are), this movie did not leave me wanting more. It was a worthy completion, and I am still unsure on which of the blood and ice cream trilogy is the best and not so best.
Hot Fuzz (2007) feels like the odd one out to me, due its more realistic nature than the other two (no matter how much I believe in zombies) and lack of apocalyptic themes, but I suppose The World's End could be, due to its reliance on Simon Pegg to be the Funny One, as apposed to Nick Frost playing the slacker with the best lines in Dead and Fuzz. Don't get me wrong, he is good in this, brilliant in fact, but in the other two, he was always the show stealer. The other three co-drinkers in TWE also seem to set this apart from the others due to Fuzz and Shaun being solely based on those two actors and their adventures (not counting Liz, who is (being honest) just there as rom-com fodder-I don't even agree with myself there, because Shaun of the Dead is such a perfect movie; I'm just making a point, shush) whereas this film concentrates a lot on the protagonist (who is often also the antagonist to himself, as in the others) and his relationship with his friends.
It was nice to see Paddy Considine as kind of a lovelorn character instead of his usual gritty self. He seemed to take quite a central role. Is this a step in the direction his career is going? Uphill and onwards to uber fame (better than regular fame, not as good as superstardom)? With roles in films like this, and more directing work, it's a definite possibility! The same can be said for Eddie Marsan and Martin Freeman, who are both becoming more familiar in both American and British films.
I did expect more lines to be quotable and more throwbacks to Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead, but the film itself didn't lose anything by not having them. The fence part (not a spoiler, it's in the advert), where Simon Pegg jumps a fence and it falls down, was needed for old times sake, even if it does seem a little pointless. The ending was differently done to the other two as well, no fade out and then fade back in a while later, like at the end of Fuzz and Dead, which I kind of pined for. I won't make a list of everything that was missing, because there was a lot, but I was not disappointed with this. They weren't flaws. If I'd gone and seen what I had expected, I probably wouldn't have been as surprised and as happy with it.
I am seeing it again soon, so look for a future review, picking the film apart in more detail. It saddens me to think that such a great trilogy of films is over, but does it really have to be? Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright could write another one! They're both young and approaching high points in their careers; that doesn't mean that the trilogy couldn't become a series for the imaginative duo. With The World's End as a conclusion, they have alleviated any pressure that was on them for a brilliant and beautiful finale. And for that, I congratulate them, and just as a fan, for not disappointing (are you reading this Christopher Nolan, cough, The Dark Knight Rises (2012) cough?).
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
PS I don't think any director gets five stars on all his films by me, other than Edgar Wright.
Thursday, 18 July 2013
The Darjeeling Limited (2007) - Wes Anderson
Still the best film ever. I notice new things every time I watch it! After all this time, always.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Monsters University (2013) - Dan Scanlon
I went to see this with a friend, who hadn't seen the original (I know, right?), and I don't know whether she quite appreciated some of the finer details, like I did. An example of this would be when Randall takes off his glasses for the first time, and he pulls that Randall snarl with Steve Buscemi making ample sound effects. Don't worry! That's not a spoiler! It is good, but not in the same league as the original.
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
This is the End (2013) - Evan Goldberg
This was a good laugh! And it feels that there's a hint of realism in Jay Baruchel's character. Danny McBride is the best character and/or person in this film.
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Monday, 15 July 2013
Submarine (2010) - Richard Ayoade
Following on from the other day's rewatch of Moonrise Kingdom (2012) - Wes Anderson and sticking with the theme of young love in indie films, I got the family to watch this British modern classic. I think they preferred this one, due to it's setting in the 80s when my parents actually grew up, and its humours a lot more mainstream and atypically British. Obviously, they're both amazing films, but for different audiences.
I think, overall, I prefer Submarine, due to its self aware narration format, which I like, particularly when one looks at the in jokes with camera technique, for example, 'the biopic of my life will only have the budget for a zoom out' (cue zoom out from Oliver). Craig Roberts, who plays Oliver, is also a reason why this film is brilliant. He plays pubescent teen so perfectly and with so much feeling, yet ever so subtley.
Also, something I never noticed before is that there is a poster in the background, when Jordana and Oliver go to the cinema, advertising one of Sight and Sound magazine's top ten films of all time: La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc [The Passion of Joan of Arc] (1928) - Carl Theodor Dreyer (not a prequel to a Mel Gibson film). Just a nice little spot, was that.
On first watch I've never got the thrill of the music in this film, but this watch, I would like to hail Alex Turner as the genius he is, both for this soundtrack and his bands!
On first watch I've never got the thrill of the music in this film, but this watch, I would like to hail Alex Turner as the genius he is, both for this soundtrack and his bands!
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
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