We all know the story--the wicked stepmother and stepsisters simply won't have it, this uppity Cinderella thinking she's going to a ball designed to find the handsome prince an appropriate sweetheart, but perseverance, animal buddies, and a well-timed entrance by a fairy godmother make sure things turn out all right. There are a few striking sequences of pure animation--for example, Cinderella is reflected in bubbles drifting through the air--and the design is rich and evocative throughout. It's a simple story padded here agreeably with comic business, particularly Cinderella's rodent pals (dressed up conspicuously like the dwarf sidekicks of another famous Disney heroine) and their misadventures with a wretched cat named Lucifer. T...
Defiance..., 2010-02-01
In between rejuvenating the Bond franchise Daniel Craig made this tale based on the real life story of four Jewish brothers who set up a community in the forests of Belorussia after their parents are murdered by fascist collaborators, they then form their own brigade of freedom fighters.
The air is filled with tension as the civilians and freedom fighters alike hide from the Nazi's and the battle to survive everyday life, the older of the brothers embark on a battle of wills for leadership this adds to an already stressful situation under the direction of Edward Zwick the over two hour running time just melts away as every scene adds to the tapestry of this film with its crystal clear picture transfer and it's superb 5.1 surround sound it keeps the viewer engaged and highly entertained.

Edward Zwick's other heroic based movies are "The Last Samurai" (2003) and "Blood Diamond" (2006)...

And you certainly can’t fault The Golden Compass for sheer ambition. The story, for those new to the series, is primarily that of 12-year old Lyra, who is in search of her friend who has been kidnapped. Naturally, this proves to be quite a challenging adventure, not least because it’s through Pullman’s vividly imagined world, crossing dimensions as Lyra travels. The film, while toning down and fiddling with some elements of the source material, stays quite close to the book, and it proves to be a good, if not Lord Of The Rings-standard, adaptation.

What helps The Golden Compass, on top of the strong effects work and scope of the production, is a solid cast, featuring the likes of Daniel Craig, Nicole Kidman and Dakota Blue Richards. And it certainly whets the appetite fo...
Execellent, 2010-01-19
I bought this film as my sons stared in it and he signed it for Blue Peter

The most successful invigoration of a cinematic franchise since Batman Begins, Casino Royale offers a new Bond identity. Based on the Ian Fleming novel that introduced Agent 007 into a Cold War world, Casino Royale is the most brutal and viscerally exciting James Bond film since Sean Connery left Her Majesty's Secret Service. Meet the new Bond; not the same as the old Bond. Daniel Craig gives a galvanising performance as the freshly minted double-0 agent. Suave, yes, but also a "blunt instrument," reckless and possessed with an ego that compromises his judgment during his first mission to root out the mastermind behind an operation that funds international terrorists. In classic Bond film tradition, his global itinerary takes him to far-flung locales, including Uganda, Madagascar, the Bahamas (that's more like it) and Montenegro, where he is pitted against his nemesis in a poker game, with hundreds of millions in the pot. The stakes get even higher when Bond lets down his armour by falling in love with Vesper (Eva Green), the ravishing banker's representative fronting him the money.

For longtime fans of the franchise, Casino Royale offers some...
Watch more than once, 2010-01-13
I rubbished this film after seeing it in the cinema... too much change too soon, and i thought i liked change.

But this really is a kickass action movie, very stylish and no fancy gimmicks or nudge-nudge-wink-wink, dad-like one liners. Craig is the perfect Bond, as cold as a professional killer would be. It's also fun for a non Fleming fan to see how he became so cold towards women. The women and villians are perfectly cast, and above all it's believable, which, after the Day Another Day waterskiing farce, is very welcome.

I only hope Daniel Craig decides to stay on for a while.

PS Paul Greengrass always gets the kudos for Bourne when it was Doug Liman who set the franchise up, and made it's best film.

Set immediately after the murder of nine Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics (an event that’s brutally re-enacted), the film is supposedly a fictionalised account based on true events of what happened next. Namely, the Israelis ordering together a secret team--led by Eric Bana’s Avner--to take out those they considered responsible.

Only it’s not that easy. It doesn’t take long for the film to start blurring the moral debate. Is what Avner and his team are doing that different from the original assassins? Can he reconcile the brutality of his actions? And what happens when the programme of retaliation doesn’t go quite to plan?

By turns, Munich is a brutal, gripping and important film. It’s not always easy to penetrate, and it really demands some good old-fashioned concentration to fully appreciate it. Yet it’s superb filmmaking, and an engrossing piece of cinema. Oscar may have snubbed it, but you’d...
The tragedy of violence, 2009-04-10
As other reviewers have said, this is a profound and engaging film that appeals to both your head and heart. I won't repeat the plot, but it does a fine job of making both the Israelis and their targets human, fallible and empathetic. And in this lies the true tragedy of the middle east: that a man who can spent his time translating the Arabian Nights into Italian can also be a 'terrorist'.

In lots of ways I found this a difficult film to watch and that's as it should be. The violence, when it comes, is always profoundly shocking, as is the human cost. The deterioration of the moral sense is captured perfectly. But beyond all, the final question that the film poses is what should we do? Does condoning violence only serve to exacerbate it? If retribution only does the same then where are we to turn?

It reminded me in some ways of Sophocles' dramas, particularly Antigone where there is no right or wrong solution, only people caught up in impossible situations where the end-point is always death. And yet the very humanity in the struggle to negotiate the moral maze is itself hopeful and I think that's where Spielberg succeeds in leaving this film. So overall a very intense experience but one very worthwhile.