What I Have Been Watching...

TAKE SHELTER

Well you know this is going to be good before you have even seen it because it's starring (oh so hot right now) Jessica Chastain (The Tree of Life, The Help) & Michael Shannon (Boardwalk Empire).Take Shelter tells the story of happily married, Curits & Samantha bringing up their deaf daughter. Things start to become a little dysfunctional when Curtis starts having these nightmares that feel so vivid, he believes they'll come true.

Take Shelter takes natural disaster movies to a new level looking at how mental illness can so suddenly impact someone's life and the lives around them. The performances are gripping & moving and the ending will leave you thinking for hours.

Trust me, this one is not to be missed.

Rating: 4.5/5

THE IDES OF MARCH

I have heard a lot of mixed reviews about this one which made me a little weary about seeing it, but my overall reaction was that it was superrrr. Seriously, Ryan Gosling (I know I have already bragged about him before) is a ridiculously good looking guy/actor. Not only that, this film also stars acting genius Philip Seymour Hoffman as well as George Clooney, Evan Rachel Wood (ehhh never been a fan of hers though) and Paul Giamatti. If you're into political thrillers or just enjoy staring at Ryan Gosling's babe'n face, then check this one out!

Rating: 3.5/5

MIDNIGHT IN PARIS

You gotta love Woody Allen doing his classic comedic style/praising a city from the point of view of the lead character. Woody has had his occasional flops in recent years but it seems he occasionally pulls out some really spectacular films i.e. Vicky Cristina Barcelona. He's stepping out of his beloved New York and appreciating some of Europe; Barcelona and now Paris. We also have the upcoming To Rome With Love to look forward to.

What I love about Midnight in Paris is the stepping back in time to the 1920s to meet such literary greats as Ernest Hemingway, F. Scot Fitzgerald, T.S. Eliot and even artist; Pablo Picasso!

Owen Wilson is perfect as the aspiring author lost and in love with the great city of Paris. This film is quirky and truly Woody Allen. It's good to see him getting in touch with his original style but giving it a new breath of life.

Rating: 4/5

THE HELP

This is one of those feel-good films that makes you want to go tell everyone about it.

Set in 1960s Southern-America, The Help tells the story of an Skeeter (Stone) a young graduate/aspiring author who decides to write a book in secret from the point-of-view of the Help. This film shows many different characters points-of-view of the Help during this time. It can be quite shocking in parts to see how African-American's were treated during 1960s America; the fact that it is unacceptable that they use the same bathroom facilities as the white people is ridiculous and appalling.

Aside from this, The Help has it's occasional humorous moments and is all over a well done film. I watched this with my mum & dad who are occasionally pessimistic and critical about modern cinema, but they were both very impressed.

Rating: 4.5/5

SUBMARINE

I saw this film ages ago and have watched it at least three times since. Why you ask? For so many reasons! It's adorable, has an amazing soundtrack done by Alex Turner (from Arctic Monkeys), so many quirky moments, awesome actors, it's directed by Richard Ayoade (from The I.T. Crowd) and so on.

This is one of those perfectly done indie-teen flicks but just a million times better.

I could go on and on but 'the proof's in the pudding.' Definitely check it out!

Rating: 4.5/5

The Muppets

Hilarious moment from the film.

I love Jason Segel! Ever since I saw him as the adorable/hopeless Nick Andopolis in the television series, Freaks and Geeks I have adored just about every character he has played since; as Eric the over-protective boyfriend in Undeclared, as the guy who always flirts with the married woman in Knocked Up, as Peter who creates an amazing Dracula musical in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, as Sydney the best man with an adorable pet puggle in I Love You, Man and of course the sweetest husband and friend ever in How I Met Your Mother.

Now Segel has brought his favourite childhood series back to life in a hilarious new movie, The Muppets.

I'm going to be honest with you, I was not a huge Muppets fan before this film. I had only seen a few of the movies as a child but barely remember them now. So I'm not sure how fans of the series and films feel about this new film but I think it was great regardless.

This film has so much to offer; great characters (new & old), hilarious musical numbers (special note goes to the song where Gary & Walter question whether they are a muppet or a man), celebrity appearances and so many comedic moments which is incredible coming from a G rated film.

I loved this film so much I saw it twice in less than a week and went home singing the songs and quoting my favourite parts over and over. I really loved the story about this muppet Walter and his human brother Gary who travel to L.A. with Gary's girlfriend and end up bringing the Muppets together for a show hoping to save the Muppet theatre. I got so carried away with the story that it brought a tear to my eye at the end both times I saw it!

This film has inspired me to check out The Muppet Show and become a Muppet fan. Sure, I'm like 30 or so years behind but if this is what this new film has intended, to bring in new fans and bring back older fans, then it has done a good job!

Rating: 4/5

so long 2011, hello 2012

2011 was a slack year for me, reviewing films wise, so for 2012 I'm going to play around with this blog. Rather than just reviewing film after film, I'm going to post anything film related. Sure, I'll do the occasional review from time to time, but I just feel it's time to spice things up a bit.

Today! I am going to list all the films I am looking forward to being released in the next few months!

| MY WEEK WITH MARILYN |

| THE MUPPETS |

| THE DESCENDANTS |

| THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO |

(I am really in love with the original trilogy of this film adaptation so was slightly annoyed to hear it was remade. But, hearing that David Fincher did it makes me more intrigued)

| YOUNG ADULT |

| LIKE CRAZY |

| THE ARTIST |

| SHAME |

(Michael Fassbender... so in love with you ever since I saw you as Magneto in X-Men: First Class!)

| 50/50 |

| A DANGEROUS METHOD |

(Michael Fassbender again... god almighty!)

| THE RUM DIARY |

G E N T L E M E N B R O N C O S

'Oh my holy crap, surveillance does... I hate those. This is ridiculous, that's the most well guarded yeast factory I've ever seen!'

- A hilarious moment from the film.

This is Jared Hess' third feature film, following Napoleon Dynamite and Nacho Libre. I happened to catch Gentlemen Broncos on television one Sunday afternoon but was unable to finish watching it due to some commitments. But, I did manage to find it a few weeks later and view the second half of the film. I was drawn in immediately during the first viewing and was again during the second. I really admire Hess' unique style. I wouldn't know how to describe it but he seems to be inspired by the 1980s with his use of fashion, music, settings and props. It's totally corny but he makes it really cool.

Gentlemen Broncos tells the story of Benjamin, a shy teenager who writes sci-fi novels and lives with his strange mother who is a fashion designer of hideous sleepwear. When he attends a writers convention he meets his favourite author, Chevalier who turns out to be a bit of an arrogant asshole.

Benjamin is played by my new favourite actor, Michael Angarano (mentioned in Ceremony review) who is perfect as the insecure Benjamin. Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords) is hilarious as Chevalier putting on an amazing voice as the rude sci-fi author.

Hess' style is amazing in this film and the characters are quirky and unique (Hector Jimenez as Lonnie is a standout, his facial expressions are hilarious), however, the story was somewhat lacking. The film starts out really great, but kind of loses it an hour in. It must be hard for Hess to live up to his debut feature, which became insanely popular worldwide and had us all saying, 'Your mum goes to college,' and so on. Unfortunately Gentlemen Broncos doesn't quite have the same appeal as Napoleon Dynamite but it still maintains the quirkiness minus the memorable quotable lines.

Look I'm going to give this a good rating because I did find it rather entertaining and fairly amusing. It just probably isn't the best thing to come from Hess (which is forgivable of course.)

Rating: 3.5/5

D R I V E

A standout performance by Ryan Gosling

This has to be one of the best films I have seen this year if not the best. After seeing Ryan Gosling in Crazy, Stupid, Love the other week and now this; it makes me wonder if there's nothing Gosling can't do. He has to be one of the greatest actors of our time.

There is so much I could say about it but I have no idea where to begin. I'm not going to tell a synopsis of the film but rather describe why I enjoyed it so much.

Firstly, the look and style of the film is brilliant. It is shot so beautifully. Most of the scenes are dark though. I was completely unaware of how violent this film was until I saw some pretty graphic scenes. (There's quite a confronting scene taken in an elevator... not going to give it away, but oh boy!) So it's not for the faint hearted because trust me these guys are not pussies, this is like some Tarantino shit.

The soundtrack is phenomenal! PHENOMENAL! I am listening to it as I write this and I am getting major goosebumps. The soundtrack and my dear friend Gabby is what made me want to see this film. After she played me 'Nightfall' by Kavinsky & Lovefoxxx, I was like, 'Girl! I need to get me that soundtrack and see this film immediately!'

The song 'Tick of the Clock' by The Chromatics used in the opening sequence is perfect! It works so well with the intensity of that scene, helping to build the tension. The soundtrack along with the look of the film & the bright pink titles seem to be influenced by the 1980s, which also work very well with the film. The 1980s influence was a big plus for me.

All of this along with the performances of the entire cast (except for perhaps Carey Mulligan who I found to be inappropriately casted as Irene) was exceptional. Gosling is a stand out for sure but Bryan Cranston, Albert Brooks, Christina Hendricks, etc. are all flawless!

I cannot stop thinking about Drive since I got home from the cinema and it will probably be on my mind for the rest of the week. I am highly recommending this one. Do not miss it!

Rating: 5/5

G I R L , I N T E R R U P T E D

Winona is too cute with that pixie haircut. Such a style icon.

'Have you ever confused a dream with life? Or stolen something when you have the cash? Have you ever been blue? Or thought your train moving while sitting still? Maybe I was just crazy. Maybe it was the 60's. Or maybe I was just a girl... interrupted.'

These were the first words that Winona Ryder said at the beginning of the film as the character Susanna Kaysen. This film literally grabs you from these beginning words & holds onto you until the closing credits.

I am no stranger to this film. I own it on D.V.D. & have seen it numerous times. The reason behind me reviewing it is because this week on my radio show we are talking about the extraordinary Winona Ryder. In my opinion the first 15 or so years of her career were phenomenal. We saw her in such films as Heathers, Beetlejuice, Mermaids, The Age of Innocence, Little Women, Reality Bites and of course the phenomenal Girl, Interrupted which, I think, is most definitely one of her best roles.

Girl, Interrupted is based on a true story following Susanna Kaysen who checked in to a mental hospital in the 1960s after she nearly killed herself or as she puts it, 'I was trying to make the shit stop.' Believing she doesn't belong there, Susanna tries coping and along the way befriends her fellow mental patients including, Lisa (Angelina Jolie) a sociopath.

What I love about Girl, Interrupted is the setting of the 1960s, the awesome soundtrack, the performances of all actors are phenomenal (Goldberg, Jolie, Murphy, and most definitely Ryder who really should have won an award), and although it's a dark story it has it's subtle humorous and beautiful moments i.e. when Susanna sings 'Downtown' to one of the patients to cheer her up - so sweet!

I think Winona Ryder is exceptional in this film! I absolutely adored her as Susanna. I found her incredibly smart, witty, insightful and very real. I never tire of watching this film. Definitely a Winona classic from the 1990s.

Rating: 4.5/5

S P U N

Mena Suvari & Brittany Murphy in a scene from the film

What I like about Spun is that it portrays the awful side to the life of drug taking/dealing that puts you off ever wanting to become a part of that world as well as adding some humor to the genre which you don't often see. Drug films are often so in your face and off-putting that it can make you feel ill & depressed. So it was nice to see a film that didn't indulge in the ugly side of the drug world as much.

Spun spans three days in the life of Ross, (Schwartzman) a young guy hooked on speed who visits his dealer and then chaos ensues. We are introduced to an abundance of characters and some bizarre events occur.

This film really does have an amazing cast; Brittany Murphy, John Leguizamo (that guy who played Tybalt in Luhrman's Romeo & Juliet), Mickey Rourke and the amazing Deborah Harry (who plays Ross' dyke neighbour/phone sex worker - brilliant!) All actors are perfect in their roles and seeing Murphy as the bubbly Nikki makes you feel a little sad that she died so young because it really does remind you how good of an actor she was.

Spun doesn't shy away from your typical drug style film editing. There's the fast paced scenes when Ross is waiting for his next hit & then the chill that follows once he has snorted the speed, the extreme close up shots; in particular the eyes when they dilate (reminiscent of Requiem For A Dream), and just simple things like make-up (Mena Suvari's teeth are a great example, oh boy are they gross).

I did enjoy Spun, it wasn't your stereotypical druggie film. I like that there was humorous moments i.e. the cops from the over-the-top 'Bust' show.

Of course the fact that Jason Schwartzman was in it also made it all the more appealing. It's not a typical role for him but he still manages to do an excellent job and still look babe'n (in a 'speed freak' kinda way).

Rating: 4/5