film freak – NZ Film Freak

Wild

Wild film poster Director: Jean-Marc Vallee
Writer: Nick Hornby (screenplay), Cheryl Strayed (novel)
Released: December 2014 (USA), January 2015 (NZ)
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Thomas Sadoski, Michiel Huisman and Gaby Hoffman
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Based on a true story, Cheryl Strayed (Reese Witherspoon) battles the ghosts of her past: heroin addiction, divorce, the death of her mother and the abandonment of her father. As a way to start fresh, she goes on a 1000-mile journey along the Pacific Crest Trail.

Reese Witherspoon in counselling scene in Wild film To be frank, the flashbacks made me feel really uncomfortable. But… I guess the world of heroin addicts shouldn’t exactly be attractive.

A classic ‘runaway movie‘, although I’m not entirely sure if this is actually a sub-genre. Nevertheless, Wild fits into this category along with Into the Wild, Thelma and Louise.

Find out more about the runaway genre here!

Wild film with Reese Witherspoon In fact, if you enjoyed Into the Wild (also a biographic), then you’re likely to enjoy Wild. It’s basically the same story but from the perspective of a woman, with different life problems.

I honestly had little doubt in Reese Witherspoon. I knew she would play this complicated character well. I’ve really enjoyed her more serious roles ever since Walk the Line.

When I walked out of the cinema, I needed time to process. I really felt moved by this film, not only because I love the ‘runaway genre’, but because the film makers portrayed Strayed’s emotions so convincingly that I started to take her problems on board.

Wild Reese Witherspoon film I’d like to point out that the screenplay was written by Nick Hornby, who wrote About A Boy. Whatta guy!

Wow, almost forgot to mention the soundtrack! The songs include a perfectly fitting Portishead song (Glory Box) that plays during flash-backs to Strayed’s lowest of times as an addict.

Other amazing artists on the soundtrack include Simon & Garfunkel, an R.E.M cover by First Aid Kit, Wings, Leonard Cohen, Bruce Springsteen… It goes on.

I think the best movies make you laugh, cry and leave you with something to ponder. Wild certainly does. Some parts are hard to watch (not quite on par with the dreaded Requiem for a Dream though), but for the most part, I enjoyed it.

Life, eh!

Jodie’s rating: 9/10

Big Hero 6

Big Hero 6 film poster Directors: Don Hall and Chris Williams
Writers: Jordan Roberts, Dan Gerson and Robert L. Baird
Released: November 2014
Featuring: Ryan Potter, Scott Adsit, Daniel Henney, T.J. Miller, Jamie Chung, Damon Wayans Jr., Genesis Rodrigeuz, James Cromwell and Maya Rudolph (Bridesmaids)
—

2015’s new year animated film, Big Hero 6, is a perfectly adequate gate-way film to the Superhero genre.

It’s about an orphaned boy – because it would unravel the very fabric of the space-time continuum and destroy the entire universe (BttF2) if it was a hero who had parents.

This orphaned boy is called Hiro, and his brother made a robot, who is essentially a nurse, named Baymax.

Big Hero 6 film poster Anyway, one thing leads to another and Hiro has to get a super team together to catch the bad guy. The rest, I’m sure, you will be able to figure out.

The first half was typical Walt Disney: fun, whimsical with a dash of the warm and fuzzies. We had laugh-out-loud moments and knee-slapping scenes.

But by the time we got half way in, it was such a cookie-cutter, colour-by-numbers superhero film. The storyline was so obvious, and they had forgotten to make us laugh.

There’s a flying scene in it, which I’m certain was developed purely because they released a 3d version. Personally, I wouldn’t spend the extra dosh. It wasn’t that great of a scene.

Also, the city they’re in is San Francisco blended with Tokyo. They called it ‘San Fransokyo’. Which I think is STUPID. They should call it ‘San Tan Frokyo’ to ensure even distribution of both city names.

It’s better than Wreck-It Ralph and The Lego Movie, but not as good as How to Train Your Dragon or Megamind.

It’s one of the better children’s movies, but not the coolest. It’ll certainly encourage kids to go to university to become inventors though.

Jodie’s rating: 6/10

The Lego Movie

Directors: Phil Lord and Christopher Miller
Writers: Dan Hageman, Kevin Hageman, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller
Released: April 2014
Starring: Chris Pratt, Will Ferrell, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett, Nick Offerman, Alison Brie, Charlie Day, Liam Neeson and Morgan Freeman
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I feel silly thinking this kids’ movie could be anything but a shallow cartoon.

Animation aimed at children but also being entertaining for adults, such as The Lion King and the Toy Story trilogy, have been and gone.

Perhaps it’s just going to be a string of cheaply made kids movies from now on. With famous voice actors dragging it to the cinema.

I thought it had a blatant moral of “be yourself”. But then I realised it’s a bit deeper than that – it’s about breaking out of the mould created by society. Liking the same songs as everyone else and told to be happy by staying in the same job for the rest of your life is the lifestyle the protagonist breaks out of.

The Lego Movie was bizarre and silly. It’s a film with a lot of hugely successful actors lending their voices to characters made of bricks.

The lego-bricked world is smart on one hand, but also looks pretty cheap.

There were a few funny one-liners, and I loved Liam Neeson’s two-faced character. His voice was hilarious.

A very similar story and appearance to Wreck It Ralph… which I gave a 5/10.

The same directors did Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs which I gave 6.5/10

I found it a bit dull, not very quirky or clever and quite a boring family movie. I know it’s aimed at children though, so my expectations shouldn’t be high anyway… Even so, I think they’re underestimating how much children can understand.

Where’s the ’90s Pixar movies at!?

Jodie’s rating: 5/10

Lone Sailor

A photo I took on the way to a music festival in late 2013

Jodie.

What Was Yesterday – My Secret Island

This is a song by the German band named My Secret Island. I was going to call them a goth-rock band based upon their latest single: What Was Yesterday because of their zombie-themed music video and heavy guitars.

However, looking through their back catalogue I found a fantastic range of genres including a cover of T. Roe’s Sheila from the 1960s and a more upbeat electro-rock sounding song named Evil Fire.

What Was Yesterday is a rock song with a well done music video portraying a sort of Frankenstein-zombie apocalypse story. It’s awesome to see a band take as much time with their music videos as they do with their songs.

If you isolate each component of this song you will get the essence of this genre mash-up.

The drumming reminds me of sixties rock ‘n’ roll during the verses, but along with the heavy guitars, it becomes a darker sounding goth-rock throughout the chorus. The vocals are definitely has a pop-punk sound which keeps My Secret Island from slipping into being too mainstream or too metal. Which I like!

I haven’t heard anything like them before, yet it sounds so recognisable… They’ve thrown our favourite genres and sounds into a pot, creating a Frankenstein sub-genre (which matches their horror music video perfectly!).

I thoroughly enjoyed this single, and I loved that music video! It’s off beat and fun… Yet dark and intense.

Their Facebook page is here.

Check our their new single, What Was Yesterday below.

You can purchase their music here:
Musicload: http://goo.gl/N43Nz4
Amazon: http://goo.gl/aiqr0O
iTunes: http://goo.gl/BNV4xd

Jodie.

Book me to independently review your favourite song, music video or film here.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Directors: Anthony Russo and Joe Russo
Writers: Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely
Released: April 2014
Featuring: Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Cobie Smulders, Frank Grillo, Emily VanCamp, Hayley Atwell, Robert Redford and Samuel L. Jackson
—

Wow! Okay, I haven’t seen the first of the Captain America films (Captain America: The First Avenger) but I feel I still got the impact of the movie without much of the back story.

I haven’t seen the Avenger movies either (don’t kill me!).

Captain America: The Winter Soldier is about Captain America’s (AKA Steve Rogers) past haunting him. He was once in the army where he lost a dear friend, Bucky. The flash backs are gorgeous; back to the 1940s. Steve Rogers is trying to fit into the modern day but the values of the people in charge don’t sit well with him.

Basically there is a lot of action, awesome characters who are well developed, and the plot is so relatable with our current battle against Nanny States and over-surveillance.

I thought Captain America was going to be a patriotic conservative goody-two-shoes… A wannabe Superman if I may say so…

How wrong could I be.

Captain America is a bad ass super soldier with a ridiculously calm attitude. What a dude. With awesome morals, too.

My favourite quote of his comes about when Nick Fury (director of the super-spy agency, SHIELD, that Captain America is a part of) says that the world needs more surveillance to eradicate potential threats to humankind. Captain America/Steve Rogers, finds it difficult to justify this lack of privacy:

“…holding a gun to everyone on Earth and calling it protection… That’s not free, that’s fear!”

But the most impressive character was Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff. She is equal to male superheroes intelligence-wise and combat-wise. She is also witty… I don’t know if I’m going too far saying this, but she is CLOSE to being a female version of Batman… I’m not taking it back! It’s out there.

It happened.

Natasha is just the coolest. She doesn’t have a fat cry when things get difficult, she is sneaky and knows how to work the system. She is still so feminine without wearing next to nothing too.

I said Black Widow should have shorter hair, but then I realised that would be inconvenient for Johansson’s stunt double whose face is obscured in all the long-shot fight scenes.

captain-america-winter-soldier-sebastian-stan-set-photo_jpg_crop_display A super exciting film that doesn’t let your mind wander during the fight scenes. Relatable characters and plot with awesome enemies. The Winter Soldier is a good-looking son of a gun, yet ridiculously ruthless with an upsetting back story.

Fantastic. Such a fun film. Even for somebody who hasn’t seen the previous film, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Scary, funny, exciting, thrilling and dark.

Go see it.

Jodie’s rating: 7/10

Step Out – José González

The first time I heard this song was on the Walter Mitty trailer… It gave me chills!

I thought it must be Of Monsters and Men, who also had music included in the movie. But it turned out to be José González! This guy is so talented.

I first heard of him via a chill-out album which included two incredible songs; Crosses and Heartbeats.

Step out has a thumping drum beat, inspirational lyrics and vocals that give you shivers.

Time to step outside, time to step outside
Time to step outside you.

House on fire, leave it all behind you.
Dark as night, let the lightning guide you…

…living life, feeding appetites.
Stayed through every hard stop, every go.
Being blank
Breathing half the time…

His music is so emotive… Such a beautiful song.

Jodie.

Au revoir, 2013!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

’tis 2014… That’s a scary thought.

This year has been a huge learning curve for me; my writing has improved and how I critique movies.

I have been accepted into my journalism major which I hope will get me closer to my dream of travelling the world and writing about what and who I discover.

Since the beginning of my blog – exactly two years ago today – filmfreak.co.nz has received 70, 000 hits. So thank you for paying an interest, I am very proud of this accomplishment. The United States have been my biggest audience, with New Zealand, France and United Kingdom close behind! A huge thank you!!

This year has been a year of the superhero. Batman, Superman, Thor, Wolverine, Avengers… I’m not complaining though. Superheroes are an awesome trend to have.

I have certainly noticed films have been getting longer though. Three hour long films are becoming popular. Although, like 3D films, I am hoping the excessive length will move along too.

I have joined up with Fiverr, so my indie films, and many of my song reviews, have been via that site. Not only has it helped fund my blog, but it has introduced us to many emerging artists from all around the world. These are inspiring and ambitious people – so well done to all of you! The list of their films are at the bottom of this post.

Keeping with my tradition, I shall present to you the film reviews of 2013. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty being the hugest accomplishment of the year, with Movie 43 being at the bottom of the heap.

Please enjoy reminiscing over these films released or viewed by my good self, Jodie, during 2013:

Gold, Jerry, Gold!
10/10 (Revised to 8/10 in 2014)
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

9.5/10
Gravity

9/10
The Prestige
The Conjuring

Hoochie Mama!
8.5/10
Cemetery Junction
Dead Poets Society
The Butterfly Effect

8/10
Bridesmaids
The Help
The Blair Witch Project
Made In Dagenham
Chocolat
The Breakfast Club
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Elysium

7.5/10
Thor: The Dark World
World War Z
Easy A
The Jane Austen Book Club
Walk the Line
Iron Man 3

7/10
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Morning Glory
Gangster Squad
Megamind
Man of Steel
Star Trek: Into Darkness
Midnight In Paris

Giddy-Up!
6.5/10
The Great Gatsby
Water for Elephants
Jack the Giant Slayer

6/10
This is the End
Django Unchained
Burlesque

5.5/10
The Wolverine

5/10
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Super
Now You See Me
Wreck-It Ralph

Yada, Yada, Yada…
4/10
Oz: The Great and Powerful

A Show About Nothing!
1.5/10
Movie 43

—

Indie Films
Tamla Rose
Beer & Seed
My Brother Lives in China
Locked (Short Film)
Agophobia (Short Film)

PLUS over 40 song reviews!

Thank you for sticking with Film Freak. I have really enjoyed this year, and I hope 2014 will bring more incredible movies to enjoy and critique!

I would love to hear from you; I read every comment you write – even the spammers’! So keep getting in touch, it means so much to hear your feedback. Let me know what movies you want reviewed!

My Facebook and my Twitter :)
Jodie.

Tamla Rose (Indie film)

Director: Joe Scott
Writer: Joe Scott
Released: December 2013
Production company: Ace Film

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Tamla Rose is a pleasant reminder of what a dedicated independent film crew can produce.

This feature-length film is about three aspiring singers who transition from back-up singers for an ego-driven solo singer, to taking centre-stage as a successful trio in their own right. The group, which perform Tamla Motown-type music, experience personal struggles and conflicts as their egos inflate.

Tamla Rose initially reminded me of the 1991 film The Commitments, with its young wannabe-musicians and the strife they go through as they fight for fame.

However, the originally upbeat and energetic tone of Tamla Rose quickly resembles a Spice Girls-like film… Which is fine if you like the Spice Girls.

Lacking the grittiness and raw talent shown in The Commitments, Tamla Rose is a clean-looking 2D insight to the cut-throat industry of producing bands.

The film is sprinkled with original songs that unfortunately appear to be badly synced, yet the tracks are enjoyable and well produced. The filmmakers clearly knew what they were doing when it came to recording the catchy songs.

The composition of the shots were well thought out and there is a clear, linear storyline. The acting was believable and well-cast with Adi Alfa, Alexandra Johnson and Tisha Merry playing the leads. A huge shout-out is also needed for the hair stylist, Sarah Gannon.

Overall, it is an enjoyable film that bounces along quite nicely considering all the young talent involved. However, it could be even better with less dialogue, a little less music and shorter scenes. It’s a fantastic accomplishment nonetheless, and worth watching for the soulful music.

Check out their Facebook page and website.

Jodie.

Beer & Seed (Indie film)

An independent film by Bill Cox.

Making a feature-length long film is not easy. The amount of organisation, preparation and dedication put into this independent film, Beer & Seed, does not go unnoticed.

Accomplishing all these things on a budget only makes it more difficult; the cast and crew deserve immense credit.

Beer & Seed is well shot, well lit and well framed. However, the acting is sometimes wooden which lets down the feel of the film somewhat.

Many of the characters are college students. who are portrayed as one broad stereotype; undedicated drug-taking drinkers. Although the opportunity for character development was skimmed over, it was comedic nevertheless.

The dark themes, the basic sets and the static shots created a stage-play look which worked well.
Although I do think a ‘mockumentary’ style would have done wonders – using the rough look of the filming to its absolute advantage.

Beer & Seed reflects a team of creative and dedicated filmmakers.

Quirky and entertaining, although certainly a ‘seedy’ storyline.

Worth a watch! Check them out at their website here or rent/purchase the film on Amazon.

Book me to independently review your favourite song, music video or film here.

A Great Speech: Shrinking Women

This is a beautiful articulation of the differences between the societal expectations of men and women.

Lily Myers is a student who performed this spoken word poem in CUPSI 2013 – The College National Poetry Slam at Bernard College, New York.

I wanted to say: we come from difference, Jonas,
you have been taught to grow out
I have been taught to grow in
you learned from our father how to emit, how to produce, to roll each thought off your tongue with confidence, you used to lose your voice every other week from shouting so much
I learned to absorb

It is about a woman’s relationship with food, and how it reflects self worth.

I’ve realized she only eats dinner when I suggest it.
I wonder what she does when I’m not there to do so.

Maybe this is why my house feels bigger each time I return; it’s proportional.

The beautiful use of words. “the house feels bigger” rather than “my mother gets thinner“. The house feels bigger because her mother doesn’t think she deserves to take up much space. It is spine tingling imagery.

Fantastic! No wonder this has gone viral.

Jodie.

A Great Speech – Gay Rights

The Greatest Speech Ever Made, by Charlie Chaplin is my favourite speech. Although, it is sad how relevant that speech still is to modern society.

The second speech that has really hit home is this one by Preacher Phil Snider. His 2012 speech creates shock and gives a fresh perspective on the pro-gay rights scene.

If you don’t have time to watch to the end of this speech, here is the surprise ending:

…the liberals leading this movement do not believe in the bible any longer. But every good, substantial, bible believing, intelligent, orthodox christian can read the word of god and know what is happening is not of god.

When you run into conflict with god’s established order you have trouble. You do not produce harmony. You produce destruction and trouble and our city is in the greatest danger that it has have ever been in, in its history. The reason is that we have gotten away from the bible of our forefathers.

You see the right of segregation I’m sorry, hold on.

The right of segregation… is clearly established by the holy scriptures, both by precept and example.

I’m sorry I brought the wrong notes with me this evening. I borrowed my argument from the wrong century. It turns out what I’ve been reading to you this whole time are direct quotes from white preachers from the 1950s and 1960s, all in support of racial segregation. All I have done is simply taken out the phrase racial integration and substituted with the phrase gay rights.

I guess the arguments I’ve been hearing around Springfield lately sounded so similar to these that I got them confused. I hope you will not make the same mistake. I hope you will stand on the right side of history. Thank you.

Good on yah!

Jodie.

The Jane Austen Book Club

Directed: Robin Swicord

Written: Robin Swicord. Based on the book of the same name written by Karen Joy Fowler

Released: September 2007

Starring: Maria Bello, Emily Blunt, Kathy Baker, Amy Brenneman, Maggie Grace, Hugh Dancy, Kevin Zegers, Marc Blucas, Jimmy Smits and Lynn Redgrave

—

This film is up there with Bridget Jones’ Diary, I reckon.

I got this DVD because there was a ‘buy two, get one free’ deal on. Since the choice was limited, I thought I’d give this a whirl.

I was concerned because I had no interest in any of Jane Austen’s romance novels and had little knowledge of the stories and characters. So I wondered if a film about people discussing these books would be confusing…

Not the case, surprisingly!

The first time I watched it, I was just like ‘meh’, better than a chick flick… But kind of average. So it gathered dust on my shelf until one day, boredom and exhaustion from watching my DVD collection five times over resulted in me indulging in The Jane Austen Book Club once again.

I have to say, I really love this film now. The six main characters are empowering and strong, they all relate to at least some part of your own personality or life experiences. I could literally write an entire in depth essay of each character if necessary, they are that ‘real’!

I’m loathed to say they are ‘very human’, but you get where I’m coming from… They are likeable and relatable.

This is a character-based film where each character has some sort of hurdle to overcome, or growth.

Maria Bello as Jocelyn

Jocelyn is my favourite! She’s never fallen in love, which she says is “all like fiction to me anyway”. She’s a dog-breeder, and if you catch onto her mannerisms early enough, you’ll notice she treats men like dogs – she’s strict, short-tempered and dominant with them. Jocelyn is known as the ‘match-maker’, always on the look-out on who she can pair people up with. She’s drawn to ‘Grigg’ because he’s “eager to please” and “tries hard”… Sort of like a dog.

“Alone’s not the end of the world. For as many years as you’ve been married I’ve been quite happily unmarried.”

Emily Blunt as Prudie

Prudie gets on my nerves SO much! But I can’t help but admire her. She is so elegant, controlled and feminine. Her mother was a hippy, so she has a systematic and professional lifestyle to distance herself from her past. However, she is falling for a rebellious student…

Prudie: Trey, you really shouldn’t come on to me.

Trey: Why? Because you’re a teacher? We’ll go back to my place…

Prudie: Let’s not and just wish we did.

Kathy Baker as Bernadette

I would love to have a best friend like Bernadette. She is optimistic and loves people. Bernadette is a free spirit and probably doesn’t think things through very much, she has been married and divorced six times. But she is totally in love with the idea of love and brags about her previous husbands like they are trophies – not regretting any of them.

“My first husband was a politician. He was embarrassed by every move I made. He said I was rude and loud. “Stop pointing your breasts everywhere,” he’d say to me. I was 17… I married the first man who looked at me… But I’d like to get married again, maybe just once more.”

Hugh Dancy as Grigg

Aww, Grigg! You almost feel sorry for him because he is so excitable and happy all the time. You just want to take him under your wing and look after him. He stumbled into the Jane Austen Club because Jocelyn was trying to set Sylvia up with him.

“Hi! Well, I’m excited. Never read anything by Jane Austen before. What is it? I went to the bookstore to buy a copy of each one of the novels, and I saw this. And I thought, ‘Well, maybe they’re sequels’. So, I figured it might be a good idea to keep them all together in one book, in case I needed to refer back…”

Amy Brenneman as Sylvia

Sylvia is a woman who is an amazing mother and best friend. Her husband who she has been with since highschool recently asked her for a divorce and she is devastated. However, toward the end of the film, she realises how much she has grown and changed – perhaps something she was never able to explore in her younger years.

“I don’t want to meet someone [else]. I wanna pull the covers over my head and read novels. And eat. I’m starving. Allegra, go get me a dozen eggs. I’m gonna make a flan.”

Maggie Grace as Allegra

Allegra is the daughter of Sylvia. She is a fresh-faced, alternative, out-doorsy young lady who immediately clashes with the tightly-laced Prudie. Allegra falls in love and trusts “too quickly” causing her strife. She is close to her mother and quickly becomes a strong component to the book club.

Bernadette: How’s Sylvia doing without Daniel?

Allegra: She’s still stuck in the wounded stage. When she’s ready for anger, I’m so there.

Each Austen novel has a curious relevance to each character’s life. The details are subtly interwoven into the story, so even if you haven’t read any Austen, you can guess pretty easily. If you are an Austen fan, you’ll relish the tibits they reference all through the script!

This ‘review’ is more of a character bio, so please excuse that! However, I have to say, the film relies on these characters so heavily, they really ARE the story.

I am so buying the soundtrack! Amazing songs! Particularly “Save Me” by Aimee Mann.

As a side note – I am such a fan of Robin Swicord now. She’s worked on Matilda, and even collaborated with the writers of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button!

Awesome watch! But obviously not for everybody.

Jodie’s rating: 7.5/10

Elysium

Director: Neill Blomkamp
Writer: Neill Blomkamp
Released: August 2013
Starring: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga, Diego Luna, Wagner Moura and William Fichtner
—

What a concoction! An action sci-fi film with epic fight scenes, storyline, characters and sets.

Elysium (a term from Greek mythology referring to where the blessed dwell after death) is based in the year 2154 where Earth is polluted, diseased and overpopulated by the poor and dying.

On an artificial planet/space station not far from Earth is ‘Elysium’. This is a place populated by the wealthy, where robots and machines take care of all the work and security of the station. They have access to machines that can cure anything from cancer to old age.

We follow the struggle of Max Da Costa (Matt Damon), as his fight to get to Elysium is littered with obstacles and unexpected twists and turns, loss and conflict.

What I like about this film is how it’s not a cold-hearted sci-fi. Every development is paralleled by an emotional character change too. It is clear how Max’s perspectives and values shift as he grows through his traumatic experiences.

The fight scenes are extremely well choreographed and shot! Wow, I got chills when the camera was mounted on the gun, as it moved around – almost first person. The jerky/shaky camera work was effectively used, without giving anybody motion sickness. This technique certainly accentuates the gory scenes! Prepare yourselves for exploding people…

Because Earth was no longer divided by countries, it was a huge boiling pot of accents. A bit of French, Spanish, American, Afrikaans and English accents/dialects were all spoken, but subtly mixed.

The characters were wicked! Jodie Foster’s character verbally bitch-slapped anybody who stood in her way. She began speaking French, and then spoke with a posh English accent with an American twang here and there. I thought her English accent was an epic fail, but considering my previous paragraph, perhaps her accent is accurate of the era.

Matt Damon kicked ass! He’s a talented actor because he plays the emotive dramas (Good Will Hunting) convincingly, with the ability to do actions (Bourne trilogy…) well. These two strengths were perfect for the character.

You’ll all know him as Wikus (the “sveetie man”) in District 9, but Sharlto Copley was far from sweet in this film. He played a vicious character, Agent Kruger, very well indeed. I think he’s one of my favourite actors, up there with good ol’ Christoph Waltz.

The ‘sveetie’ man of District 9

My favourite character, however, was Spider (Wagner Moura). He was not a stereotypical ‘geek’, but an intelligent and complex person. His intentions are confusing at first, which makes his character strong and respectable.

The bad: There were a few dull scenes and minor plot annoyances, such as certain occurrences being a little too lucky. The motives of the villain – Agent Krugar – are relatively unknown/unconvincing. There were a few dull spots where my mind wandered a tad, and the final fight could have been more memorable.

If I had to illustrate what this movie is like, I would explain it by using the following recipe:

Ingredients:

A bunch of futuristic flying machines, that reminded me of Star Wars,
A few chase scenes and the adventure of Total Recall,
A pinch of In Time – the future representations are similar at times
The DIY surgical scenes of Looper
Shares some themes and familiar characters of I Am Legend
Chuck in some untrustworthy robot servants from I, Robot
Mix in the social divide of The Hunger Games,
And for the icing, spread on a DOLLOP of District 9. The set design, attitudes and props are similar. (Due to sharing the same writer and director)

Method:
Mix everything together. Add the neglected love interest, and a sprinkle of violent fire arms. Beat into submission and heat at magma level to make the hottest sci-fi film of 2013.

Jodie’s rating: 7/10

Natural and Nice – Junior Turner

Hey kids!

So I recently heard about this song and it is pretty cool!

I’ll tell you what, Junior Turner’s voice sounds similar to the likes of David Bowie mixed with Robbie Williams. Pretty awesome sound actually.

Junior Turner reached fame after winning the chance to release a single for the BBC Children In Need competition in 2010, against 110,000 applicants! Talent much!!

I guess this is technically pop music, but it’s got trumpets and techno keyboards… It’s a concoction of 80s dance music and 90s pop music, with a twist!

I love the sound – fun to dance to, easy to sing to and really upbeat.

Here is the sample of Natural and Nice, but you can buy the whole song on iTunes.

Check out Junior Turner’s Facebook, Twitter and website!

I’m sure you’ll enjoy his music. Another of my favourite songs by Junior Turner is ‘Hurt‘ featuring Neil Taylor. Check it out!

This guy is super talented.

Jodie.

Book me to review your favourite song, music video or film here.

The Long Road by Free From Gravity

The Long Road is a song about the lead singer’s mother surviving cancer.

With a soft rock, ballad sound, the upbeat guitars and slightly melancholy vocals – I can totally hear the influence of The Eagles. The drumming is great!

Although not the kind of genre I would usually listen to, I can definitely see the popularity of this band growing.

The music video is creative and really well made! Although, I think it would look better if it was all in black and white, the time differences between the parallel story lines aren’t portrayed too convincingly. Perhaps making it tad too literal..?

The Long Road is a song you will want to listen to on repeat. It’s quite moving. Watch the interview with the lady who inspired this tribute song here, on the band’s website.

Check out the song:

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Jodie.

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The Wolverine

Director: James Mangold
Writers: Christopher McQuarrie (uncredited), Mark Bomback and Scott Frank
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Hiroyuki Sanada, Tao Okamoto, Rila Fukushima, Famke Janssen, Svetlana Khodchenkova and Will Yun Lee
Released: July 2013
—

Average much!

I am a Wolverine fan though! Absolutely. The character is a wicked hero who didn’t fail to impress.

However, the storyline was bland, boring and predictable. Nothing special.

There were some great scenes though. The ninja scenes was rather entertaining. The fight scenes and roof jumping was cool too. But nothing really sticks in my mind as being outstanding.

I enjoyed the more light-hearted and comedic dialogue, similar to that of Iron Man at times, which fitted well.

The villain was absolutely ridiculous!! Every scene Viper was in she was wearing a little less clothing. She was not scary. Not cool. Not shocking. She was just creepy and weird…

A painfully average film. There were no real highlights, or overly appalling parts. The acting was not amazing, nor was the story. No twists, just a straight-shooting film.

However, the fact that Wolverine was portrayed as a convincing hero, did make the film worth-while.

Jodie’s rating: 5.5/10

The Conjuring

Director: James Wan
Writers: Chad Hayes and Carey Hayes
Released: July 2013
Starring: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ron Livingston and Mackenzie Foy
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That was the coolest horror movie I have experienced in a long while.

It was top of its game in the horror genre! It had all the things you love about horrors in one movie.
Creepy ‘chuckie’ dolls
Freaky children
Supernatural hauntings
Demonic exorcism
Based on true events

It’s got the lot! If you like sudden jumps, suspense AND interesting story lines, then you will love The Conjuring.

The story is surprising to say the least! The trailer makes it out to be a good old fashioned house haunting. In fact, the film is much more complex with various characters being directly linked to the hauntings. The hauntings are not necessarily by ghosts, but by demonic forces.

I read about the back story, and the film is pretty loosely based on it. A negative force or spirit, believed to be a previous owner named Bathsheba Sherman, allegedly tormented the mother, Carolyn Perron. However, that’s the main event that was included into the script, the rest were mostly embellishments. (Read more here).

Some of my favourite parts about the true events were left out of the movie. Like how ghosts were apparently whispering “there are seven dead soldiers hidden in the walls”, when in the movie, they changed it to “we want to kill your family”…

One of best things about this movie is that it isn’t too predictable. The Conjuring does not have a typical structure, it has many false climatic and low points which keeps you on edge. Also, there’s no mucking around with sceptical main characters in the beginning, you’re just thrown straight into the story!

My FAVOURITE thing about this movie is how the camera would linger on whatever was scary. It wouldn’t be like: ‘*Scream* oh my God… Did you see that?‘. It’s more like:
‘*Scream* oh my God! Get it off the screen! Pan the camera! I can’t watch! Is it still there!? Jeez!‘
Which was an awesomely affective technique…

Of course, expect some cringe-worthy and weird masks. This is a James Wan movie after all with some clear similarities with Insidious and Dead Silence.

Some of the acting was a little over the top, with a few cheesy lines. But pretty good for the most part.

If you’re going to watch The Conjuring, spend out to have the cinematic experience. The surround-sound is essential for many of the frights, which are very well timed! None of the jumps happen when you think they will, and when the frights do occur, they don’t hold back!!

Absolutely fantastically made! I don’t think we’ll see another horror this scary for a while.

Jodie’s rating: 9/10

The World’s End

Director: Edgar Wright
Writers: Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg
Released: July 2013
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsan and Rosamund Pike
—

…what the hell did I just watch..?

So I’m guessing most of you are huge Edgar-Simon-Nick combo fans! I’m sure you were just as psyched when you heard about the final instalment of the Cornetto trilogy being released!

Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and The World’s End – bring your check list for all of the similarities and shared jokes! It’s like being a part of a huge inside-joke.

Anyway! So I was so excited to see this film! But this was more wacky, more psychedelic, out of left-field, ‘what the hell’ material that I ever thought could be possible for these three guys to invent.

The movie started out awesomely! It was hilarious as they introduced the main characters.

The general storyline was that the five main characters wanted to complete the 12 pub pub-crawl they failed to finish in highschool. So these near-on 40 year olds begin their journey, until they realise the people in the town are super weird.

Many people in the town turn out to be blue-blooded robots. And a Shaun of the Dead-esk pursuit begins… It got pretty weird. Not going to lie.

Just on a deeper note, I felt the robots were a metaphor for being in the institution of 9-5 jobs and not fulfilling the more enjoyable parts of life.

Simon Pegg’s character is my favourite of all their creations within the trilogy! He was absolutely convincing! Fantastic!

Simon Pegg and Nick Frost had loosely swapped their Hot Fuzz characters around, as in, Nick Frost had the straight-laced character and Simon Pegg had the weird and lazy guy. It was cool to see a different side of them.

I wish more of the characters from the previous two films showed up in this one… Although I did adore Rosamund Pike! I’ve been a fan of hers since Made In Dagenham.

I felt bad noticing how old everybody looked in this film. But I LOVED how they wrote that into the script – their story is about 40 year olds rediscovering the freedom of their youth.

It was sort of nostalgic reflecting on how long ago Shaun of the Dead was made – 2004 and Hot Fuzz – 2007. For some reason, I think all of their fans feel like they’ve followed them on their journey for the last eight years.

I really want to see it again – I feel like it will be better the second time around. But, it’s definitely in third place within the trilogy, for me. I feel like the storyline was a little too similar to Shaun of the Dead, and it didn’t flow nearly as well as the other two films.

Just like the other two films, the structuring was impeccable. Although the ending was… Questionable.

However, the strong character development was enough to keep you totally engaged throughout the entire film. Let alone the well-choreographed fight scenes.

OMG I HAVEN’T REVIEWED HOT FUZZ YET! It’s on my priority list!

Jodie’s rating: 7.5/10
PS: You’re going to feel the urge for an ice cold lager after this movie.

Hurdy Gurdy Man – Donovan

I first heard this song on the trailer for The Conjuring – I. LOVED. IT. Works SO well with the horror genre.

It was recorded in the sixties and became a hippy-related song. George Harrison actually helped write the song, however, his verse was not included in the single that was released.

Awesome song. Psychedelic and creepy!

Jodie.

Jazz versions of pop songs (The Great Gatsby)

I am so into the 1920s music and fashion at the moment!

It all began after I watched The Great Gatsby…

The coolest thing about the movie was that they did epic jazz versions of modern pop songs. The Bryan Ferry Orchestra perform the altered versions.

My favourites are:

Young and Beautiful (Lana Del Rey)

Crazy In Love (Beyonce/Emeli Sande) Amazing!!

Back to Black (Amy Winehouse)

Alicia Key’s “Empire State of Mind Part ll” was also covered beautifully! But I can’t find that version…

I am so into this New Orleans style of jazz!!

Super cool :)

Jodie.

Iron Man 3

Director: Shane Black
Writer: Based on Stan Lee’s Iron Man. Screenplay by Drew Pearce and Shane Black
Released: April 2013
Featuring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwenyth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale, Jon Favreau and Ben Kingsley
—

Holy crapolah. This movie… Guys… Just..

Wow.

This is a huge step away from the typical and clichéd superhero movies. This one is very funny with a switch up of roles among the characters. Like, it is an action-comedy with an underlying deep and meaningful storyline.

Throughout the movie, Iron Man/Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) has anxiety attacks. Although I think it could have been more effective and emotional by having flashbacks, it was still pretty intense watching the usually unemotional hero break down.

The story is pretty decent, although I have to say that the villain, Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) is a little disappointing. He isn’t overly scary, freaky, creepy or quirky. Just. A dude who was out to get Iron Man.

The new characters in this film include a boy named Harley who helps Tony Stark. Every conversation these two had is hilarious. Tony is his legendary sarcastic self.

Rebecca Hall played Dr. Maya Hansen who is a totally undeveloped and uninteresting character… She is almost pointless. Which is disappointing, because I really liked Rebecca Hall in The Prestige and I don’t think she could show her complete talent in this film due to the empty character.

I’m not a huge fan of Gwenyth Paltrow who plays Pepper Potts, but she definitely picks up her game in this movie – she is bad ass!

I reckon the music could have been way more epic…

Overall, though, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie! It was so funny, exciting and I didn’t get bored during the fight scenes.

Jodie’s rating: 7.5/10

Jack the Giant Slayer

Director: Bryan Singer
Written: Darren Lemke and David Dobkin
Released: March 2013
Starring: Nicholas Hoult, Eleanor Tomlinson, Stanley Tucci, Ian McShane, Bill Nighy and Ewan McGregor
—

What an exciting cast! Bill Nighy, Stanley Tucci and Ewan McGregor! *drool*

I first saw the advert on the back of the bus, and quite frankly I thought it looked a little.. Lame.

I mean starting from Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland, we have had remake after remake of these fairytales and fables; The Wizard of Oz, Mirror, Mirror, Snow White and the Huntsman…

jack_the_giant_killer_slayer — Yay! Ewan!

So to see Jack and the Beanstalk being remade was not a surprise, and I expected it to have similar disappointments with all of the other remakes.

Namely the fact that the violence has to be toned down so that it can be suitable for the younger audience. Despite the storyline being 100 times better if it went the full hog and making it an M.

JACK THE GIANT SLAYER — Oh hey, Ewan. What cha doin’ on the cliff there…

I was right. But it didn’t stop the story being enjoyable.

I do think the writers tried to cram a big storyline into a short amount of time – the intro seemed extremely rushed.

The special effects are amazing! Very well done. Getting the proportions convincing between the giants and the humans must have taken a bit of thought. Although, I still maintain that the giants should have had horses… Like, huge horses. That would have been cool.

Oh, and all the giants were male… I thought that was a bit odd.

Also, if I was designing where the giants lived, I would have made it way more fantastical, not just the average 16th century environment but quadruple the size.

Toward the end you will think you know exactly what will happen because it looks SO obvious leading up to it. However, I am happy to say that the writers did not take the easy way out. The ending isn’t as obvious and typical as one would expect.

This is a pleasantly entertaining film. Not hilarious or deep and meaningful. Just lightly entertaining. Nothing more than you would probably expect.

Jodie’s rating: 6.5/10

Morning Glory

Director: Rodger Mitchell
Writer: Aline Brosh McKenna
Released: November 2010
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford and Diane Keaton
—

I love this movie. This is my happy movie.

Rachel McAdams plays Becky Fuller, a workaholic who is made redundant. She eventually gets hired by a breakfast show that’s going down the pan. The story follows her struggles to rebuild herself, and the show.

There are some fantastic lines! Harrison Ford is so dry with his delivery. It’s so perfect!

Mike: Why do we have to mention that first cup of coffee? Why not just say, “Watch Mike Pomeroy before your morning dump?”

I love Becky because she has arms flailing all over the place, her hair is messy and she’s so intensely dedicated to her job. Rachel McAdams was reluctant to take this part because she said she’s not funny enough to be in a comedy. But I disagree! McAdams is so natural in this, she makes it funny in a Bridget Jones sort of way.

Morning Glory‘s morals are sort of similar to The Devil Wears Prada… Well, it’s written by the same person, so I guess that’s why. But they’re basically about how important a career can be to someone, treating it like a relationship. In fact, when Becky discusses her job, it sounds like she’s talking about a person.

I guess although I understand why the reviews of this movie are average, I personally love it because I can relate to the industry having studied television and journalism. Becky is a character who I would love to be! I want her hair, wardrobe, confidence and success.

Becky: Why haven’t they bumped you up [to executive producer]?
Lenny: It’s not for me. I did it for a couple of weeks once, but they put me back at Number Two. Apparently, the crying was distracting.

Keep an eye out for how Becky’s hair and clothes change as she grows and becomes more secure. It’s the attention to detail that makes this movie fun.

A very funny film, particularly if you’re familiar with the news industry!

Jodie’s rating: 7/10

Dead Poets Society

Director: Peter Weir
Writer: Tom Schulman
Released: June 1989
Featuring: Robin Williams
—

Imagine Good Will Hunting + Scent of a Woman… and with a touch of The Ron Clark Story. That pretty much gives you Dead Poets Society.

It is a great story about breaking the mould. Not being what your father wants you to be, not giving into the black and white versions of education, but finding the creativity in it and allowing your imagination to run riot.

Tradition. Honour. Discipline. Excellence.
Travesty. Horror. Decadence. Excrement.

Robin Williams plays John Keating who is an English teacher with unorthodox teaching methods in a private all boys school. The tradition and formality of the school keeps the students as a uniform with little individuality. But Keating is able to bring out the strengths in them and encourage creativity.

It is one of the most inspiring movies, particularly because Robin Williams is so brilliant.

There are so many amazing scenes in this film, but I think this one below is my favourite. Keating brings out the best in a painfully shy student, showing him what he’s capable of by pushing him to open up:

I thoroughly enjoy these philosophical films, especially with the quirky Robin Williams whose improvisation skills are beyond any I have seen. He is amazing.

His character is everybody’s favourite teacher. Somebody who recognises the students weakness and strengths and getting the best out of them using methods that are best for them, even though they may not be necessarily typical of a prep school environment.

Lookatthingsdifferently — Look at things from a different perspective.

Dead Poets Society is uplifting and inspiring but also shocking and morose. It delves into the worst of humanity as it explores the desperation of students trying to escape the clutches of tradition.

Jodie’s Rating: 8.5/10