MOVIES – MUSIC – TV – BOOKS
Umm… So this is only the BEST SONG EVER COVERED BY THE BEATLES!
If you’re feeling down, put this record on and scream along to it. So friggin’ awesome.
Cool fact: You can totally hear John Lennon’s sore throat in this recording!! Apparently he struggled to sing throughout the entire recording of the album, Please, Please Me. Naw… Good ol’ Lennon…
Jodie.
Director: Jeremy Brock
Writer: Jeremy Brock
Released: 2006
Featuring: Julie Walters, Rupert Grint, Laura Linney
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Okay, so this film has been HUGELY underrated. Despite being aware that everybody has their right to their own opinion, I, as New Zealand’s official Freak of Film, would like to say:
YOU ARE ALL INCORRECT.
Driving Lessons is a slower-than-usual paced film with a script as philosophical as Forrest Gump, but with humour as dry as Napoleon Dynamite (in some parts).
It’s about a boy named Ben (the gorgeous Rupert Grint… He’s so cool… *sigh*) who is born into a devoted Christian family, which becomes an oppressive and controlled lifestyle that batters Ben down into an emotionally-absent teenager.
Until he meets Evie.
This film has my favourite actress, Julie Walters playing an eccentric elderly woman named Evie who has been “…married and divorced three times. Once to an actor, once to an English Lord and once to a Californian” and is far from the ‘saved’ friends Ben usually acquaints himself with.
She shows him the ropes of life – with the moral being more-or-less that you can learn about how the world should be and the theory of how life works, but you don’t know a thing until you LIVE it.
She has had such a colourful life and is so liberal, which influences Ben to shake the strong reliance his controlling mother (Laura Linney) has over him.
I LOVE Walter’s interpretation of Evie who is a filthy-mouthed but very warm woman who anybody would wish was their nan in real life!
Ben’s mother, Laura Marshall, was played incredibly well by Linney who showed the character to be an insecure and controlling woman who appears almost like a puppeteer behind the mask of a wholesome church-goer. Laura Linney does such a great job, you begin to dislike the character very quickly!
The religious undertone isn’t something that should put non-religious watchers off, as it is an approach that is refreshing and open-minded. The story does very well keeping a non-bias view of beliefs, that do not suffocate the plot with pre-set ideas.
I have got the soundtrack which I absolutely enjoy! However, a few more like Ben Fold’s song “Jesusland” would have been cool.
I can’t help wondering what a TOTALLY different film this would have been if the old woman was an old man and the young boy was a young girl. Even if the plot remained the same… Just found that peculiar…
This is a film that is deep enough to watch repeatedly, yet, light enough for a social viewing. The humour is fantastic and Rupert Grint shows his versatility. A must see!
Jodie’s rating: 8/10
Fave line:
“Evie, you’re in the middle of nowhere.”
“Then I shall cling to the edge of somewhere!”
Director: Conor McPherson
Writer: Neil Jordan
Released: 2003
Starring: Michael Caine, Dylan Moran, Lena Headey, Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson, Michael McElhatton, Abigail Iversen, Aisling O’Sullivan, Ben Miller, Simon Delaney, Alvaro Lucchesi
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The funniest movie I have seen in a very long time.
It’s intelligent-funny… Not happy-clappy, seen it before, recycled Hollywood shizz. With Dylan Moran playing the protagonist and the supporting act being Michael Caine, this concoction of pure awesome is sure to be a pleaser.
Surprisingly, this film is not well-known. But it is a film everybody would enjoy with its ironic plot line and an under-lying love story, which I am happy to say doesn’t take centre-stage regularly. Dylan Moran’s character, Thomas Quirk, is indeed a quirky guy who loosely calls himself an actor working in play with a fellow actor, Anthony O’Malley (Caine).
O’Malley soon hears about a scheme going down in the local bar where
“a certain somebody owes money to another certain somebody, but they have never met”. He decides that Quirk does need to practice his acting skills and convinces Thomas to be the collecter whom the debtor has never met. Of course, how could something like that ever be as straight forward as it sounds!?
Dylan Moran’s disguises throughout this scheme are hilarious and you will be sure to be repeating and imitating the characters after! This script is so funny and its catch-phrases remind me of the film Juno.
Despite being an up-beat comedy, the camera work (particularly lighting) in many scenes are spot-on and very well done, so is the music. Now I really want to buy the soundtrack! The songs and compositions by Michael Nyman are spectacularly emotional and support the visuals very well.
It’s a film that merges the stage actors and improvisation actors which I thought was really clever and it gave the film a really unique twist.
I can’t believe the negative reviews I have found on this film… How? o.O I thought it was HILARIOUS and I watch it regularly.
Jodie’s rating: 8/10
I can’t find a trailer, so here’s a pretty funny scene where Dylan Moran is playing Thomas Quirk who is undercover as “Barreller”. Barreller accidentally gave the money to Quirk earlier on. Now, Quirk is pretending to be Barreller, confronting “Jock” who the money was supposed to go to… Ugh, don’t worry, it makes more sense in the film.
Director: Michel Gondry
Writers: Michel Gondry, Charlie Kaufman and Pierre Bismuth
Released: March 2004
Starring: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood, Tom Wilkinson
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My Valentine’s Day post. Why? Because of this line that Joel delivers in the film about Valentine’s Day:
Joel: Today is a holiday invented by greeting card companies to make people feel like crap.
Which I found amusing.
It’s still one of my favourite movies after multiple viewings. I discovered this film in English class at high school and (admittedly not actually getting it the first time I watched it) I have loved it ever since!
Believe you me, the people who said they got it after the first viewing were either lying or they read the plot on Wikipedia.
It explores the idea of erasing painful memories and the implications of this. Imagine being able to erase the memory of an embarrassing moment. More seriously, imagine being so distraught with losing a loved one that you choose to erase the memory of them ever existing.
Mary (Kirsten Dunst): Blessed are the forgetful, for they get the better even of their blunders.
But is erasing difficult memories enabling one to make the same mistakes again? Is never meeting a true love better than enduring the loss?
It follows two main characters Joel (Jim Carrey) and Clementine (Kate Winslet) whose difficult relationship leads them down the road of removing the memory of each other. They are polar opposite. It shows how two people can complete each other, but also how much they can clash.
Clementine: This is it, Joel. It’s going to be gone soon.
Joel: I know.
Clementine: What do we do?
Joel: Enjoy it.
I love how the story explores relationships. How sometimes the things you love about someone becomes the very reason you fall out of love with them.
Joel: [on tape recording] And the whole thing with the hair – it’s all bullshit.
Joel: I really like your hair.
Clementine: Thank you.
(Cleverly, Clementine has ever-changing hair, which helps viewers keep track of the order of the plot, which jumps between past and present.)
The actors appear to be playing the opposite of the sort of characters they’ve been typecast to play. Winslet and Carrey both nail it though.
This film is thought provoking to say the least. Mind boggling too. But it’s ultimately about accepting that pain is part of growing, and loss is a part of life.
Joel: I can’t see anything that I don’t like about you.
Clementine: But you will! But you will. You know, you will think of things. And I’ll get bored with you and feel trapped because that’s what happens with me.
Joel: Okay.
Clementine: [pauses] Okay.
It’s sort of like Inception meets The Matrix, but that’s just because it’s the exploration of a different perspective of life.
At the end of The Matrix we all asked ourselves ‘is this world virtual?’.
At the end of Inception we all asked ourselves ‘am I in a dream?’.
At the end of Eternal Sunshine, you’ll ask yourselves ‘have I done this before?’.
You’ll be sure to pick up a few funny sayings and dwell over the small touches that you would never notice the first three times of watching this layered film.
Clementine: You’re not a stalker, or anything, right?
Joel: I’m not a stalker. YOU’RE the one that talked to me, remember?
Clementine: That is the oldest trick in the stalker book.
Joel: Really? There’s a stalker book? Great, I gotta read that one.
This is an absolutely awesome film that will have you thinking for hours. I thoroughly enjoyed it as it is a fantastic break from the monotonous love stories out there. The technology used and tricks done on set by the camera and the actors is old school, but very cool.
Eternal Sunshine is a film that not everybody could relate to or fully appreciate. I think it is because this is not a spoon-fed love story Fedexed from Hollywood to a cinema near you!
Jodie’s rating: 8.5/10
This trailer really makes this film very light and fluffy… Which isn’t accurate.
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Writers: Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale
Released: 1989
Starring: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Thomas F. Wilson
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Well, we went to the recent past of 1985 in the last movie so it’s only logical to go to the future of 1985 in the sequel! We go to 2015 where the cars are flying and instead of skateboards, we have hover boards… Doesn’t seem quite so realistic now that 2015 is just around the corner! You scientist better get on to it. We’re going to be disappointed if we don’t have our flying cars and hover boards by 2015…
“Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads….” We go to the future with Marty (Micheal J. Fox), Doc (Christopher Lloyd) and Marty’s girlfriend Jennifer (Elizabeth Shue) because Doc is concerned that their son will be framed by the grandson of Biff (Thomas F. Wilson), Marty’s high school bully.
Whilst there, Marty buys a magazine that recorded the results of every major sport of 1985 making betting a breeze. Unfortunately, he leaves it laying around for it to land in the wrong hands – Biff’s – who steals the time machine and creates an alternate 2015! So Doc and Marty have to save the McFlys as well as going back to 1955 to prevent Biff giving the magazine to his younger self who would create the evil alternate era!! Pheph! This is a much more scary and shocking film than the more lighthearted last, but still very exciting.
This dark film exposes the full extent of the dangers of time travel as Marty finds his father’s grave and his mother married to Biff in the alternate 1985. There’s a lot of gun action and accurately predicts the rise of corporations ruling the world (Biff’s company owning the police force) and everybody’s infatuation with money. It’s a massive flip-side to the innocent times of the previous film which is unexpected.
I preferred the colourful times of 1955 of Back to the Future I. However, this is still a very enjoyable film! Particularly the epic music by Alan Silvestri – equally as great as the previous film.
Jodie’s rating: 7.5/10
Check out my review of the sequels: Back to the Future I and Back to the Future III
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Writer: Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale
Released: 1985
Starring: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover
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The first of the Back to the Future trilogy is a mind-blowing and exciting science fiction adventure. About 17 year-old Marty McFly (convincingly played by a 24 year old Michael J. Fox) who finds himself in ‘Doc’s’ (Christopher Lloyd) unreliable Delorean time machine and is whizzed back to the year 1955, unable to return.
I loved how you really had to think about where you were and who certain people were in relation to Marty’s life back in 1985 – such as meeting his Uncle “Jailbird Joey” who never seems to want to leave the bars of his play pen, when in the future, he never seems to get out of jail!
Unfortunately, Marty makes too much of an impression in 1955 and accidentally attracts a little too much attention from his future mother, Lorraine Baines, (Lea Thompson) – endangering his very existence!
As we are trapped in the fifties, we see the repetitive nature of the McFlys and how each generation get bullied by the same family of Marty’s bully as well as the lack of self-confidence carried from father to son in the McFly family. This structured life brings out the irony and humour of the story.
So while he is stuck in the fifties he finds the Doc from that era to help try find another fuel to get the usually nuclear-run time machine back to the eighties! All at the same time, trying to get his future parents to meet and fall in love whilst trying to get back to the future! It’s such an exciting and fun film which looks very well made for its time.
The music is probably my favourite aspect of the film – simply because I’m a sucker for 50s music and that era. The best version I’ve heard of “Earth Angel” (originally released by The Penguins) was in this film sung by Marvin Berry and the Starlighters – it was way cool! But not as cool as Marty’s rocking version of Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode”! Music really sets each time era and helps you keep track of where the characters are from and where they are now.
THIS FOLLOWING CLIP MAY BE A SPOILER
Do not watch this following clip if you have not seen the film before.
I love Robert Zemeckis’ movies from Forrest Gump to the Polar Express and A Christmas Carol and the Back to the Future trilogy is way up there too! He has always made meaningful and incredible films which always show off his talent.
If you love timetravel or great music, this fun and easy-to-watch classic will never get old!
Look out for the sequel!!
Jodie’s rating: 8.5/10
Check out my review of the sequels: Back to the Future ll and Back to the Future lll
Director: Guy Ritchie
Writers: Kieran Mulroney and Michele Mulroney
Released: 2011
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Noomi Rapace, Stephen Fry
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Well, it’s all peaches and gravy in this corner. (Unlike NZ’s major film critic, Kate Rodger, with her surprising 2/5 rating) However, I thought this film was a fantastic sequel to the flawless first Sherlock Holmes‘ film!
What I liked in particular was the continuity between the two films, unlike the Twilight Saga and Harry Potter series which are all directed by different people each time, subsequently creating very different looks per film. I think that the continuity was mistaken as the Sherlock movies being “exactly the same”, but I strongly disagree as it keeps a regular tone.
Oh. My God. The COOLEST scene EVER was when Holmes and Watson were running through a dark forest being shot at, and it was all in slow motion with close ups of the bullets shattering tree trunks and bombs blowing up soil which was so pin-sharp I could see a bit of dirt fall in Robert Downey Junior’s eye!
I did think this scene looked an awful lot like the running-through-forest scene of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1…
Sherlock Holmes forest scene:
Harry Potter forest scene:
The major difference between this Holmes film and the last is the absolute hilarity of the second! It became like a black comedy/action film. My favourite parts being when Sherlock Holmes creates lycra-like suits with various patterns such as a wooden print or the same pattern as a chair which allows him to literally blend into the furniture around the house.
A Game of Shadows showed the relation to James Bond films, due to the amount of ammunition and shooting scenes, which became a tad boring after a while. I think some of it could have been cut to make the 2.5hr movie a tad leaner.
You see a lot of the world in this film too. From London to France to Switzerland – you see the whole kit and caboodle – way cool. Way cool.
Guy Ritchie’s style was clearly carried through to the sequel. Everything we loved, such as the slow motion and pre-planned fights Holmes talks us through. Love it.
Not to give anything specific away, but the fate of a certain character was disappointing, and I don’t think it should have panned out the way it did. It goes against the genre’s structure. But, at least it’s original.
Fantastic film – just like the first!! How the ratings are so low, I really do not know.
Jodie’s rating: 9.5/10
Director: Tom Hooper
Writer: David Seidler
Released: January 2011
Starring: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Guy Pearce, Timothy Spall, Derek Jacobi, Jennifer Ehle, Michael Gambon
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Nominated for 14 BAFTAs and the winner of 12 Academy Awards, this incredibly triumphing story of King George VI (Colin Firth) has earned every award it has been given hands down.
The King’s Speech is the account of King George VI, who is forced to overcome his debilitating speech impediment to reach his full potential as a strong ruler which he becomes by default due to his Father’s death, King George V (Sir Michael John Gambon) and the resignation of his brother, King Edward VIII (Guy Pearce). Despite the premise of this film sounding as if it may become a repetitive and stationary story of pure frustration and despair, The King’s Speech was actually an incredible journey of expectation, victory and unity.
After countless ‘royalty approved’ doctors, they were about to give up when Queen Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) found Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). This begins the strong friendship created between the King and his unlikely acquaintance as well as the trust that has to be built between patient and doctor. The humourous, innovative methods and remarkable outcomes of the pair are inspirational and uplifting.
The cast for this movie was not short of perfect. Colin Firth is the protagonist who became the stuttering King George VI convincingly. He shows that he is a versatile actor who is capable of mastering any genre – from Bridget Jones’ Diary to The King’s Speech.
Queen Elizabeth is played by the eccentric and off-beat actress Helena Bonham-Carter who pulls off the composed and stately Queen (very unsurprisingly) faultlessly.
The award-winning Timothy Spall portrays Winston Churchill exactly how I would expect him to play any of his characters; with skill and completely believably.
The hero of the film is Lionel Logue, an “average Joe” in comparison to his patient of Royalty. Logue is played by Geoffrey Rush who surprises the King by his informal approach to speech exercises. Yet, after much deliberation from the King, he creates the casual and relaxed environment for the stuttering King to learn in without feeling superior.
Tom Hooper shows himself to be quite a genius director. The composition of each shot supports the feelings of the King. With the claustrophobic feel of the environment when he is unable to communicate what he needs to say as well as the unsupportive feel of large and empty rooms. Warm and quality lighting creates the atmosphere of being in the presence of Royalty, contrasting the cold, dim, dark glow of the London streets.
This is wonderfully layered film which allows viewers to look into it as deep as they like. Therefore, the second and third viewing is as enjoyable as the first. The King’s Speech is a fantastically made film with every shot perfectly composed and every scene well constructed – this really is a motion picture suitable for anybody old enough to appreciate it.
There is no action or speed chases, but the inclination of tension and nerves kept me in the moment. This narrows the audience that this film may appeal to. However, I think that anybody who has the capability to appreciate triumph and success from shear hard work and determination will value this historical journey. I can guarantee that anyone who sees The King’s Speech will be able to take something away from it.
Jodie’s rating: 9/10
Director: Christopher Nolan
Writer: Christopher Nolan
Released: 2010
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Tom Berenger, Michael Caine
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Wow! If you liked the Matrix you’ll like this!
A mind-twisting film which demands the full attention of viewers as it’s not an ‘easy watch’. By that, I mean that a passive audience is not going to be handed the complex idea of dream inception and deep characters on a platter.
Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is the primary dreamer or extractor hired by a corporation-owner, Mr Saito (Ken Watanabe) to plant a lucrative idea into Robert Michael Fischer’s (Cillian Murphey) mind via a dream. This is to encourage him to decide to break up the energy conglomerate which he recently inherited to make way for Saito’s company.
Despite this not being an easy task. But to add to the challenge, Cobb’s late wife invades the dreams, potentially sabotaging the entire job and putting the dreamers (including Joseph Gordan-Levitt and Ellen Page) in fatal danger. This is because dying in a “dream within a dream” will not wake them up, but send them into limbo which is basically no-man’s land for what seems like an eternity.
That was a mouthful!
This epic film is a James Bond action meets Matrix science fiction meets a totally unique twist of a psychological thriller, which incorporates the modern fear of privacy invasion and increasing reality that companies have the most power.
With so much going on and so much to think about during the movie, the two and a half hours whizz by.
My favourite scene would have to be the parallel storyline of the van that is driving the unconscious dreamers, with the storyline of the conscious dreamers within somebody else’s dream. (Yes, it’s difficult to explain).
It’s the fast-paced dream versus the slow motion van that explains the time difference between dreaming and real life.
The count-down begins as the slow motion van is driven off of the bridge and the dreamers need to accomplish the mission and wake up before their physical selves drown in the van. It’s so intense!
The cliff-hanger ending leaves much debate between viewers – so after much philosophical thinking, logical analysis and heated debates with friends, you would be back in the cinema for a second viewing or buying the special edition DVD from the nearest store.
The devoted and flabbergasted viewers will find themselves questioning how they come to certain decisions (are we in a dream?) in the same way the Matrix promoted questions of fiction and reality (is this world physically real?). In the same way as Sims players question if somebody is playing our lives out.
Of course, different people take away very different things from this movie. The most popular comment being “I don’t get it.”
With a stream of shallow chick flicks and rom-coms, Inception was a breath of fresh air for those who enjoy a bit of an “epic”.
Of course, the film and talented cast is not all that creates such a movie – Hans Zimmer’s haunting scores were essentially what gives you chills!
Not forgetting the song that was the cue for the dreamers to wake up in the film (and is everybody’s alarm clock sound now) – Non, Je Ne Regrette Rein sung by Edith Piaf. It stirs emotions of apprehension and nostalgia in the audience which is parallel with the characters’.
I’m sure you can tell that I am an Inception fan, but I have to say that such a long and complicated film has less entertainment value by the third or fourth viewing.
However, it’s a “must have” for all dedicated DVD collectors or movie-making enthusiasts.
Even if it is a DVD that is not watched frequently, it’s a film that will always spark conversation and is kept handy for casual social viewing for a wide audience.
Jodie’s rating: 8.5/10
NZ Film Freak