The Woman in Red - 1984 ***

Not a particularly funny film as Gene Wilder movies go, but still something to watch on a Sunday afternoon. Wilder plays Teddy, a happily married man who becomes besotted by a woman he sees at work. The whole film is basically about him trying to find ways to be close to her without his wife finding out. I thought it was a bit of a sad film, and portrays married men as idiots who can't control themselves.

Gangster Squad - 2013 ****

Gangster Squad is one of those films i know I'm going to like before i watch it. It was better than 'Lawless' but not as good as a typical 1940s noir. Sean Penn was almost unrecognisable as Mickey Cohen, the sadistic leader of the gang which has total control of the whole of Chicago. Emma Stone plays his beautiful abused mistress, and Ryan Gosling plays the cop who falls in love with her, whilst trying to put an end to the bloody violence.
It's typical Hollywood. Glitzy, glamorous and indulgent. I enjoyed it, although found that it ran on a bit.

Funny About Love - 1990 ***

Not a bad film. Gene Wilder plays his usual manic self, falling in love with an independent and beautiful woman before finding himself in a quandry after they cannot become pregnant. He doesn't really want a baby of course. So what does he do? Falls into the arms of a younger woman with none of the stress of burden. He then realises that he does want children, but is he too late? A bit of a darker film than others that Wilder has done, but worth a look.

(HORROR) Playback - 2012 **

What an awful film. An what is Christian Slater doing in it??! (It's always weird when that happens). It's loosely (and badly) based on the Ring movies, but fails miserably in every area. The acting is awful, almost funny, and the story doesn't make any actual sense. It's interspersed with horror scenes that are being shot in the movie so in the end you forget who you are actually supposed to be watching. Add in some shaky camera work (essential for any awful film) and some fake tomato ketchup blood, and you have this film. Avoid.

A Haunted House - 2013 ***

Quite a funny film, obviously trying a bit too hard to spoof too many horrors though in a way which is no longer original. Scary Movie has been there and done that, and considering there is now a 5th movie in their franchise that has just been released it leaves 'A Haunted House' in the shade.
Marlon Wayans is a funny guy, much funnier of course in films where he performs with his brother, but still quite good here. He plays Malcolm, who moves into a large house with his girlfriend of two years Kisha, and almost immediately, strange and unexplained activity begins to take place at night time. Not the type you would expect in a regular horror film mind, but still peculiar.
The whole film is trying to be the Paranormal Activity movies, and some of the scenes are very funny and effective. On the whole however, I think the film lacks being really hilarious, and just comes across as being quite flat.

(HORROR) Crowsnest - 2012 **

Starts off well, as do many 'found footage' films, and then gradually progresses to being completely ridiculous. Why do people in mortal danger have to quiver and snivel and breathe SO loudly in films like this? Of course they are going to be seen! Idiots. The also have a tendency to poke their cameras/camcorders out of their hiding places into the faces of the psychopaths and then wait until they have nearly been dismembered alive before they run away. Quite predictable, but quite amusing anyway.

Stoker - 2013 ***

I've seen the 'Vengeance' trilogy by this director, and they all have the same weird slightly creepy vibe. I was expecting something else from 'Stoker.' I'm not sure what though. The story is (apparently) loosely based on Alfred Hitchcock's 'Shadow of a Doubt.' I sort of wish that I hadn't known that before I saw the film.
After her beloved father is killed in a suspicious automobile accident, India retreats into herself, that is, until her hypnotic and mysterious uncle Charlie appears, supposedly with the idea of looking after India's mother in the large old house that they have been left with. Charlie's intentions however, are much darker and obsessive than either India or her mother could ever have imagined. Nicole Kidman's performance isn't very strong either.
Worth a watch, but altogether disappointing compared to his trilogy of Tartan Asia Extreme movies.

I Want You - 1998 *

This is a really awful film. If it wasn't for the lovely Rachel Weisz it would be a total write off. Helen is a young woman running a hairdresser's and dating a local radio star. Unbeknownst to her the psychotic boyfriend that she split up with a while ago is out of jail and looking for a reunion with her, which doesn't go down very well with her new boyfriend or the young, mute boy obsessed with her. It's awfully acted (I know it's supposed to be filmed in an amateur style but really?!) and all the characters are immensely unpleasant.

A Good Day To Die Hard - 2013 **

Such a confusing film, with one of the longest most amazing vehicle chase scenes I've ever seen. Bruce Willis is getting on a bit now, and it does show. In this film he meets his son for the first time in decades in the middle of a particularly nasty action scene and they get together to shoot various nasty characters. There's a lot of double-crossing in this film and even more explosions but apart from that it didn't have a very clear storyline.

Jack the Giant Slayer - 2013 **

After how much I enjoyed 'Oz the Great and Powerful' I thought 'Jack the Giant Slayer' would be pretty good as well. I wasn't sure how they would 'modernise' the story of Jack but on the whole it couldn't of been closer if it had tried.
That annoying boy from 'About a Boy' is now all grown up and taking the main part of Jack, who feels a bit perturbed when he notices that a large beanstalk has sprouted in his house (he was entertaining the princess at the time and now she is at the op of the stalk) and decides to help the soldiers in their quest to find the princess at the top and also slaughter the massive troll who has probably taken her prisoner.
It's just a bit wishy-washy and nothing is really black and white. I didn't enjoy it.

(HORROR) The Purge - 2013 ****1/2

'The Purge' is a terrifying film. More so because you can imagine this sort of thing happening in America somewhere down the line. To me this was far more disturbing than a slasher or ghost film. It focuses on the problems with our society, and how the wealthy regard the poor.
The Purge happens once a year. On this night, for 12 hours, all criminal activity is legal and emergency services are unavailable. Unemployment and criminal rates are at an all time low because America is in effect 'cleansing' itself of people it does not feel are worthy to be alive and no one is going to bother committing a crime throughout the rest of the year if they know that they can do anything they want on this night and not have to face the consequences of their actions. Already a terrifying thought, but what would happen if you found that a group of people wanted to break into your home and kill you, and there was no one to help? This is exactly what happens to Ethan Hawke and his family on the night of the annual purge, after his son unwittingly opens the door to a homeless man who is seeking refuge. The house is then surrounded by a group of menacing individuals all wearing masks (presumably all from the same high class neighbourhood that he lives in) who tell him that unless he gives them back their 'target', they will enter his house with force and murder him and his family. Hawke is an unpopular character, for, despite working in security and designing top notch security systems he doesn't seem to comprehend that his family or he would need to use one. He has CCTV cameras set up to cover the whole street, automatic metal locks on his doors and windows, and still believes somehow that he is invincible and that no one will try to harm him.
The Purge supposedly is a way for America to release all the tension and angst that has built up until that point in the year. Once they have committed murder on this night, they feel 'refreshed' for the remainder of the year and can go about their business with minimum stress. It is also something of a 'survival of the fittest' situation, as the targets are most likely to be underprivileged, poor people who need to be 'got rid of' to make way for a world of millionaires and high flyers. Anyone think this seems a bit too 'Holocaust-like' for comfort?? If they don't have the right precautions in place to keep themselves safe at home then they don't have a leg to stand on. The only thing to be done is pray that you survive the night.
This is one of those films that stays with you for days afterwards. I cannot stop thinking about it.
See this.

The Firm - 2009 ** 1/2

I've seen a few football hooligan films, and it never ceases to amaze me how anyone can justify this type of behaviour. I don't really understand the point of it or the film, except that it's been made to highlight the fact that there are men out there who's lives revolve around when they can next batter someone in with a baseball bat. The Firms are different teams (typically) and they all come together regularly to fight each other. You can tell one firm from the other by their clothes (the lead character of the film has a ridiculous haircut and an even worse dress sense) and the main firm favour FILA, whilst other firms favour adidas or Kappa.
It's just violence for the sake of violence, and I thought it was pointless.

Freddy Got Fingered - 2011 **

For such a cult film with a massive following I thought this was going to be hilarious, but in all honesty I can't understand what all the fuss was about, and only raised a smile a couple of times throughout the whole film. Tom Green overacts, but not in a clever, 'I'm taking the mickey out of this kind of film' way, more in a total lack of understanding what funny means. The famous quotes you hear bandied about come swift and fast, without really standing out (give me Bogart's last line in 'Casablanca' any day) and I was left straight-faced by the whole film.

Oz - The Great and Powerful 2013 **** 1/2

I absolutely loved this. If it's Disney you know it's going to be pretty darn good. And it was. It's the prequel to 'The Wizard of Oz' and explains how Oz winds up in the Emerald City. Certain parts are very clever, hinting at areas of the original film that you have to do a double take on. Oscar Diggs is a small town magician, and when he is hurled into Oz after a hurricane he gets mistaken for a great and powerful wizard. The city and all it's riches will be his, if only he can take down the real 'Wicked Witch.' But who is she??

Wonderful graphics, very like 'The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus' and Danny Elfman's score is brilliant and fitting as always.

I can see how people might be divided in their reviews of this film, but I thought it was very well done. 

(HORROR) Dark Skies - 2013 ****

I wouldn't normally count sci fi as one of my favourite movie genres, in fact I tend to try and and avoid it if at all possible. 'Dark Skies' was different. It was frightening and real and I found myself thoroughly disturbed by the end. A family begin to witness strange and abnormal activities taking place in their home, added to which, their son has started to behave in a very peculiar way, seeing things, staring into space and drawing pictures of grey men in his room who he says want to take him away. Before long, the family are starting to realise that something otherworldly is happening, and they are absolutely powerless to stop it. 

This isn't a particularly original film, but it's really scary and well done. I liked it. One of the better films of the year. 

Fatal Instinct - 1993 ****

I do love spoofs and parodies and this encapsulates both! Sean Young plays the crazy, bunny boiler femme fatale who becomes obsessed with a lawyer after she has a brief affair with him in the style of 'Fatal Instinct' (which was at it's peak when the film was made). You could actually make a list of every crime/thriller noir that this film makes references to as there are at least 20 in the mix to look out for. Armand Assante is good as the male lead, with a perfect voice for the over-scene narration that was so popular in so many noirs. A funny film, and it tests your knowledge of other famous thriller noirs from cinema history. 

Adam's Rib - 1949 *****

I'm ashamed to say I've never seen 'Adam's Rib' the whole way through, something kept putting me off. Probably Katherine Hepburn who grows more annoying with each film that I see her in. Sometimes I've even had to turn a film off because she is taking up too much screen time. Never fear, she was hilarious in this and complimented Spencer Tracey so very well. 'Adam's Rib' is one of a number of films Tracey and Hepburn did together and you can tell by now how comfortable they are together. Their screen chemistry is perfect, rivaling another of my favourite couples - William Powell and Myrna Loy.
Both act as rival lawyers, defending and prosecuting Judy Holliday who tried to shoot her husband after discovering him with another woman. Tracey believes her guilty of attempted murder full stop, whereas Hepburn takes the sympathetic side of a hen-pecked wife who discovers her husband is an adulterer.
Initially able to separate work from home, the two start off well, but as time goes on, they both become frustrated with each other at court, each believing the other will jeopardize their chances of winning the case which then spills into their home life. The film is fast-paced, intelligent screwball at it's strongest.

Conflict - 1945 ****

A hidden gem. Critics said that this was a strange film for Bogart to be in. Totally unlike his Sam Spade personalities. I think it was brilliant, and I found the storyline to be immensely exciting. Bogart plays an unhappily married man who is in love with his wife Katherine's sister Evelyn. He decides to murder Katherine in the hopes of starting a relationship with Evelyn but things go horribly wrong when he starts to believe he is seeing traces of Katherine everywhere. Of course he cannot go to the police to tell them his fears because they are hoping she will be found alive and so he begins to live a nightmare which threatens to send him mad.
Excellent movie. Overlooked and understated.

Body of Lies - 2008 ****

Didn't know what to expect with this film, but I actually enjoyed it. It had an interesting story, and Leo Di Caprio was better than I hoped. I felt he might be a bit past it after his celebrity status of the 1990s, but actually he still gives a fine performance. Russell Crowe takes a backseat to Di Caprio as his boss who couldn't care less about trying to forge relationships with the Middle East and makes the rules up as he goes along. I was in the mood for an action film and this was just the ticket. I do find films based around current affairs to be quite gripping, and as most of this was filmed in Jordan, Iran, Syria and Dubai it was riveting to watch. I can imagine it must of been quite nerve-wracking to film in those places as well given the strict moral codes they all enforce. Ridley Scott is a pretty good director so really it was a given that this would be exciting. Watch please.

(NOIR) Angel Face - 1952 *

I was so disappointed with this noir which has been on my list of must sees for a long time. Jean Simmons was awful, and the plot was even worse. I felt no empathy for any of the characters, and Robert Mitchum acted like he was doped up. I didn't enjoy this, and I fear it may have put me off film noirs for a while.

Stevie - 2008 **

'Stevie' is an awfully bad film. It's badly made, badly shot and badly acted. The young girl playing the victim looks like she's been asked to act in the most wooden way possible and doesn't seem to react to anything, good or bad.
I know you can't always expect much from 'made for tv' films but this was scraping the barrel to the extreme. 'Children's evil imaginary friends' films can be terrifying if done correctly, but this was neither scary, nor entertaining in the slightest.  

(HORROR) American Mary - 2012 **

One of those films I had been looking forward to seeing for ages, a bit like 'Excision', but it was just a complete disappointment. The lead actress was pretty good, but the story didn't make much sense, and I found some of the characters really disturbing (I think it was due to their awful acting more than anything else). Mary Mason plays a lunatic student who begins specializing in extreme body modification (such as tongue slitting, piercing genitals etc) after feeling disillusioned by the medical world which results in her seeking out thrills in more terrifying was each time.
I wouldn't say the film constitutes 'stylish, artful and darkly funny' at all. Disappointment.

Same Time, Next Year - 1978 ****

Surprisingly witty, tender and actually a very amusing plot, 'Same Time, Next Year' manages to glorify infidelity in a way that can't make you angry with the 2 leading stars.
Burstyn and Alda meet by chance after each having a meal alone in a lovely inn, and decide to spend the night together in Alda's holiday home. The next morning, although superficially full of regret, they both decide that they must see each other again, but not in such a regular way as a normal affair. Their rendezvous will take place at the same place and the same date each year (when Alda is away from his family in his holiday home working) and will last for one weekend only.
The basic premise of the film takes us through year after year after decade, as the couple become older, wiser, yet still totally devoted to each other. Their weekends are spent talking about their feelings, and the good and bad in their wives and husbands. It's bizarre, because you come away from the film, almost believing that they aren't doing anything wrong, when in reality they are having an affair which spans 25 years, however little time they actually spend together.
I enjoyed it, found it funny, and wasn't offended by it's carefree view of cheating (although I am usually the first to diss films where this takes place). I thought Burstyn and Alda made a terrific couple, more so because they are both so different and unlike each other.

Tucker & Dale VS Evil - 2010 ****1/2

Another surprisingly good film. I found this hilarious and completely unique. Tucker and Dale are 2 slightly odd but very well-meaning guys who go to their vacation home for a restful break but are caught up in the hysteric mania of a group of college friends who believe that they are axe-wielding murderers after they witness the 2 friends rescuing one of their group from a freezing cold lake and taking her back to their cabin. It really is very funny and I laughed out loud a number of times. The acting is great, and over the top in a good way with some very smart one-liners. Watch.

(HORROR) Insidious - 2011 **** 1/2

This genuinely frightened me. I'm almost immune to horror now after watching so much of it but I was scared by this. It's in the same vein as 'Sinister' in that there is a terrifying presence surrounding a family. This time, a couple's young son appears to fall into a coma, when in fact he has the ability to astral project in his sleep and has entered a horrifying limbo-like world called 'The Further' where tortured souls of the dead are kept forever. His lifeless body is all that is left and as a result, the couple call in a paranormal investigator, hoping to save their son's spirit before it is too late. I really enjoyed this, and despite the very cheesy sequences involving 'The Further' I thought it was well fleshed out and creepy. It reminded me a lot of another film called 'The Dark', where a young girl is taken to a limbo-like world which her family have to save her from. Worth a watch with the lights off.

(HORROR) End Call - 2008 *

Okay, this was a really badly done horror. I know it's practically ripped off every phone related film from Japan and America but I was still sort of hoping that it might deliver on some parts. It really doesn't, and you would do much better to watch one of the earlier movies of the same type of genre (such as 'Missed Call' or 'Phone'). I guess there are only so many times that you can watch a film about a haunted phone.
I'm becoming more and more disheartened by Asian horror.

Bad Company - 2002 ****

I shouldn't really have enjoyed this film so much. Notably because Roger Ebert thought it was totally unoriginal and too jam-packed. I agree that it does have similarities to films like 'Rush Hour' about interracial partners that hate each other and then grow to like each other, but I still enjoyed it. And as for having a lot going on, that was what made it so thrilling in my opinion. It's all about the CIA, special undercover missions, and Chris Rock being hilarious, showing himself up painfully next to Anthony Hopkins and his intellectual persona. I liked it, a lot more than I was expecting to, but then that's usually the way with these sorts of films.

(NOIR) The Suspect - 1944 ****

Robert Siodmak is one of my favourite directors. Here he takes a different turn away from his usual  noirs into early 20th century London, where an unhappily married accountant named Philip (played brilliantly by Charles Laughton) meets a beautiful young secretary named Mary, after she comes to him looking for work. Although Philip finds himself falling in love with Mary, he decides to keep the relationship platonic, until his horrible wife Cora starts to suspect what is going on and threatens him with a scandal. Quite soon after this, she falls down the stairs to her death. An accident? Or a deliberate act on Philip's part? The build-up  of tension is brilliant here, and I loved the shift of time period Siodmak has used. Added to which, Laughton is a superb actor.

(HORROR) The Chernobyl Diaries - 2012 ***

After feeling that I maybe hadn't given this film the time it deserved by shutting it off half way through the first time, I decided to brave it again the other evening.
Much of my feelings were the same however. The only thing I found interesting was the actual background to the disaster and the information regarding the city or Pripyat that the tour guide gives the characters at the beginning of the film.
A group of friends are travelling around Europe and decide to stop off in Ukraine to see a relation. The relation in turn suggests that they meet his friend Uri who organises extreme tours around Pripyat.
The next day they meet Uri, who drives them to the entrance of the 'zone of alienation' where they are met by guards, informing them that they will not be allowed any further. Uri doesn't take any notice however and drives the group another, secret way which only he knows so that they cane take photos and soak up the atmosphere alone. But then of course, the car stops working...
Well it's what you might expect, and it's quite a predictable film so it shouldn't in all honesty get a high mark. However I'm giving it three stars because I find this horrific and devastating disaster a lot more terrifying than any horror/slasher film I know of, and know that this will be something that keeps me awake at night for a long time coming.

Brothers - 2009 ***

I'm not sure what I thought of this film. It wasn't a particularly original plot ('Pearl Harbor' has to some extent been there and done that) but it was performed quite well with a knockout performance from Tobey Maguire.
Maguire plays a marine named Sam, who is presumed dead when his helicopter crashes over water. Sam's wife Grace (Portman) and his brother Tommy (Gyllenhaal) come together to support Grace and Sam's 2 young girls after hearing the awful news. You need to watch to see whether they actually become lovers or not, but when Sam is found, alive (albeit with hideous emotional scars) he immediately presumes the worst and becomes obsessed with the idea of his wife and brother.
I'm not sure how much of a good representation it is to someone who has been through the horror of war, although Maguire (in particular the kitchen scene) does astoundingly well in my opinion. You can literally see the pain etched into his face.
The other 2 are okay, and Portman makes a fair contribution as Sam's military wife/widow, but I think the 2 young daughters really stand out in their parts a little more than she or Gyllenhaal do.

I've Loved You So Long - 2008 ** 1/2

I adore French films, because usually the characters are so complex and interesting that you are desperate to watch their progression throughout the film until the last scene.
Kristen Scott Thomas is a good actress, and I've enjoyed many of her films, but I was left utterly cold by 'I've Loved You So Long'. She plays a woman who has to come to terms with integrating herself back into society after being in prison for 15 years for a crime that is only made clear towards the end of the film. I don't complain lightly when I say that the entire movie is simply scene after scene of endless depressing talks, looks and thoughts between her and her sister. She seems completely unwilling to change her personality, and cannot understand why the few people who appear to be standing by her start feeling like they are being pushed away. When you find out the nature of her crime, you are even more angry at her character which is consistently vacuous and vacant throughout with no supposed regret or remorse. I really didn't enjoy this film, and it makes you feel so very depressed afterwards. There is no resolution, no moral, nothing except bleak despair. If you want to watch that may I suggest something brain-numbing like the Kardashians?!

(NOIR) Edge of the City - 1957 ****

This was a brilliantly captivating film, and I found Sidney Poitier's performance to be totally gripping and heart-breaking.
Cassavetes stars as army deserter Axel, who arrives at the waterside of Manhattan looking for work as a longshoreman. He is lucky enough to find work under a man named Charlie, who turns out to be a vicious, racist bully when he finds out that Axel has become friends with and would rather work for a kind-hearted and decent man named Tommy. Axel decides he would be a lot happier working for Tommy after he starts renting a room close by to him, makes friends with his wife and starts a relationship with the wife's best friend. Charlie on the other hand is not happy with this, and will do anything he can to break up the friendship between the two men.
The film is captivating in many ways, mainly for it's plot content (an interracial friendship which was quite a daring topic for 1950s film) and for Poitier's acting which constantly blows me away in any film I see him in. You come away from the film wishing that if everyone had a friend like Tommy, then the world would be a much happier and serene place.
Watch this.

Cockneys vs. Zombies - 2012 ****

I was expecting this to be pretty unfunny but thought I would have a quick watch of the first ten minutes or so as I had nothing else to do. I was surprised how funny this was, and actually it was a well chosen cast in my opinion. Michelle Ryan is a bit annoying, but the other characters were all funny and suitably smarmy for a British zombie movie.
The funniest guy has to be Alan Ford who showed off his typical gangster trademark personality as one of the OAP's in a retirement home that is plagued by zombies shortly into the beginning of the film. It is up to him and his other friends there to battle their way out without getting eaten.
Funny film, I was surprised.

Don't Tell Mum the Babysitter's Dead - 1991 **

The scariest thing about this film is Christina Applegate's massive eyebrows which take over most of her scenes with abject force.
The movie itself is a bit stupid. It's I suppose trying to follow along the same sort of lines as 'Weekend at Bernie's' and while that was hilarious from start to finish, this one fails miserably and doesn't deliver any sort of humour to it's audience. A mother leaves her five children at home alone for 2 months while she goes on vacation, and during that time (well, to be honest, about 2 days after she's gone) the babysitter dies. Keen to have the place to themselves and not worry their mother, the siblings make a pact not to tell her what has happened and instead try to run the house themselves for the remainder of the time, making more and more mess and mistakes as they go along. It's not funny.

(HORROR) Home Movie - 2008 **

This is an appallingly acted film. I always hone in on horror films that feature evil children because they are usually a lot scarier than adults. However these 2 children were awful. I can't tell if they are just very bad at acting or whether they are meant to come across as the vacuous, dull characters that they do.
It's basically a movie documenting the descent of this family into a terrifying madness caused by the 2 children who seem to be unhinged and dangerous. The father insists on documenting absolutely everything so a lot of the film is taken up with menial junk such as having breakfast, watching TV and going for walks around the garden.When the climax comes, it's predictable, stupid and not in the least bit frightening. Better to watch something like 'Children of the Corn' to see really frightening children.

FAQ About Time Travel - 2009 ***

Three friends sit in a pub dreaming about building a time machine and how they would use it. One of them visits the toilet and when he returns everything has changed drastically. From then on, the trio are kept apart, brought together, and introduced to new and bizarre characters.
It was quite funny, and quite a good idea for a film, but I can't say I was shrieking with laughter at every second. You'll most probably recognize all three main actors from other things as well.

Van Wilder: Party Liaison - 2002 **

'Van Wilder' is just not a funny film. Ryan Reynolds is awful and since Tara Reid went on Big Brother expressing herself as such a vapid and dull human being I can't say I was impressed by either of them. Van Wilde has been going to school for 7 years, and he's doing just fine. He's not actually doing any proper work, but he's getting a lot out of the social and party scene which comes with each year of new talent. He's the kind of guy women hate who thinks he can just snap his fingers and you come running. Tara Reid, plays a boring, journalistic nerd who has no romantic interest in him and just wants stories for her newspaper. They meet, they get on, then they don't, then they do, she's got a boyfriend, he's single but wants her, bla bla bla. The typical American formula for all rom-coms. Boring.

Four Lions - 2010 *** 1/2

With a film as questionable and taboo as this, you really have to try and see the funny side and not offended. Yes of course any act of terrorism is horrific and unforgettable, but this film is trying to put a lighter spin on things, which I suppose to a wider audience could go either way.
Four completely idiotic British jihadists go off to learn how to become professional terrorists, the end goal being them blowing themselves up. Obviously this sort of thing does happen and so it is quite a tender subject, but the film is not in any way trying to insult or degrade the victims of attacks like these, more show how young, dumb and inexperienced terrorists usually are in the lead up to these dreadful incidents and how little they actually know and understand of what they are about to do.
It's funny, so give it a watch, and don't feel guilty.

LOL - 2012 ***

Okay, I have always been one who found Miley Cyrus an infuriating person, both in Hannah Montana and in real life. However, I have to say that she can act. Her performance here was solid and at times, quite gripping to watch. She plays Lola, or LOL for short who has to navigate her way through teenage life at school with her friends, potential boyfriends, and at home with her over-protective mother (played rather unconvincing by Demi Moore) and distant father.
Not a film to watch if you want to be uplifted, because to be honest it made me cry at the end, but there you go.

My Week With Marilyn - 2011 ***

Not a bad film. Michelle Williams was nowhere near as good playing Marilyn as I had hoped though. I think the fact of the matter is that no one can replicate Monroe, however hard they try. If they could she wouldn't be the most iconic star in the whole world. And I think that's nice. Eddie Redmayne plays a young stage hand named Colin who is lucky enough to get to work with Marilyn for a week when she is shooting her new film 'The Prince and The Showgirl.' He witnesses her highs and lows, her amazing screen presence and her bewildering insecurity. It's a nice film in itself, but I don't think Williams and Redmayne were well cast, although Kenneth Branagh is well placed as Laurence Olivier.

All about the Benjamins - 2002 ***

Ice Cube's a pretty funny actor. I've watched a few of his movies now and they all make me chuckle a bit. This movie sees Ice Cube as a bounty hunter embroiled in a diamond scam. It's action and comedy mixed together. Worth a see.

Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo - 2005 ***

Another quite funny offering from Rob Schneider.This takes on an almost identical form to the last movie, although this time it's set in Amsterdam. Schneider is good in small doses, but I'm glad I've exhausted his films for the time being.

Keith Lemon: The Film - 2012 ***

My boyfriend told me this was a ridiculous film and not worth seeing but I still thought I should see it anyway as it looked rather amusing. 

It was amusing, and Leigh Francis is a funny guy, but my other half was right, in that there wasn't much filling to Keith Lemon's part. It seemed just a platform to show off all his well known characters and give other 'celebrities' cameo appearances. The story itself was poor, and I think it might have worked better if his character had been fleshed out and the cameos/characters had been taken away so that we could focus on seeing what he is actually like as an actor. 

Le Rayon Vert - 1986 ***

Eric Rohmer is a master at projecting the thoughts and feelings of characters going through different stages in their lives onto the screen. Here he does so with a gentle tenderness as we are introduced to a young woman named Delphine who has broken up with her fiance and is fed up with constantly being pitied by her friends and family. She has no one to go on holiday with after she is stood up by a friend and so bravely decides to go alone, encountering a variety of men and women along the way, all the time trying to rebuff the men's advances on her. I loved the imagery of the hot, French summer, but I found Delphine to be an infuriating wimp of a character. 

House Party - 1990

Dear god you can tell this is 1990. It's so dated and it beggar's belief how normal people went out in public with hair cuts like the 2 above.
Martin Lawrence only has a small part but apparently the two main actors on the poster are well known as comedic stars. It's quite funny. A bit like 'Superbad' in a way, in that the whole film revolves around a big house party and how all the various characters are trying to get there and stay there throughout the movie. It's awfully cheesy in some scenes, and because of this it's a bit off-putting. I adore old films going back to 1920 so it's not as though I am one of those shallow people who finds any film made before 2000 'old', but sometimes films like this do not travel well through the years and just need to be left alone. It hasn't aged well.

(HORROR) AB Negative - 2006 *

A hideously bad movie. Badly made, ridiculous plot and horrible camera work that seemed to make everything worse. The idea of harvesting human organs is quite a delicate subject but was (excuse the pun) mercilessly butchered here. I might recommend this movie to my worst enemy to waste their time, but no one else.

The Wrong Road - 1937 ***

A young couple robs a bank and then hides the money somewhere that only they can find it. They then end up in jail and have to serve considerable sentences before they can be reunited with their money. The trouble is, when they do get out they are being pursued by the man's cellmate and an investigator, both on a trail for their vast sum of stolen loot.
Surprisingly enjoyable, although sadly very bad quality.

Prometheus - 2012 ***

I can't say I understood much of 'Prometheus', which is probably because I haven't seen all the 'Alien' films. From what I did understand I liked, and I thought the CGI was very well done. The main actress had a punch-inducing face, but apart from that it was quite gripping. Will have to see the other films though to appreciate what is going on.

(NOIR) Woman's Prison - 1955 **** 1/2

I wasn't expecting much from this noir. It's set in a woman's prison for one thing, and I doubted how good the acting would be from the female stars, especially when one of my least favourite actresses Ida Lupino was playing the psychotic prison warden.
I couldn't have been more wrong. The acting was superb in my opinion, with standout performances from Jan Sterling and Cleo Moore (who is one star I will be looking out for in future movies) and you really become involved in the individual stories of each of the convicted women. Very good.

(HORROR) The Cabin in the Woods - 2011 **

All these reviews on the poster make out like this film is something special. Something unique. It really isn't. The whole 'You think you know the story. Think again' quote is defunct. For one I don't think I know the story because there isn't one, and secondly I have no wish to think again about it anyway.
This is just your average horror with some jumps, some bizarre sci fi undertones and a general helplessness that comes with every scene.
Boring.