Time Lapse ✪✪✪✪✪

Opens in Australia:               No release as yet

USA: 27th August, 2014 (Portland International Film Festival)               
UK:No Release as yet.

Other Countries:                   Release Information 

I'm championing this film because I'm an independent author, just like the filmmakers of Time Lapse are independent filmmakers. When you are out there on your own, sometimes, just knowing that there are a few people that really get what you are doing, gives you such a boost. I've had that thrill with wonderful reviews for my books from complete strangers, and so I like to pay it forward.  I apologise ahead of time that I am going to whet your appetite for a film that you may not be able to easily catch at your local cinema. Time Lapse is doing the rounds of the international film festivals, so if you are lucky enough to have it in your city, DO NOT MISS IT.  Otherwise, go to your local cinema and ask them when it is showing and they may contact the distributors and see if they can get a cinema release. Now to the review...

Time slip is one of the toughest genres to pull off. There are so many tropes around this sci-fi sub-genre that writers can easily fall into a plot-hole black hole from which their story cannot return, and they will be criticized for its implausibility. Time travel is implausible, but it holds so much opportunity if written right that we are happy to go along for the ride. Usually, though, the studios worry little about these issues when it comes to the latest science fiction offerings, casting mega-stars, spending a fortune on special effects, and little on the script. Then they blitz with a twelve month pre-launch marketing campaign, and we go along expecting “wow” and, instead, receive “woe” for our box-office dollar.

So you wouldn’t expect that a small indie release would blow you away with its script and originality, but that is exactly what happened at the Revelation Film Festival in Perth, Australia when viewing Time Lapse, a film directed by Bradley King and produced by BP Cooper, both of whom wrote the script. Think classics like Memento, Triangle, and Donnie Darko, where the story twists your mind with its complexity, and the minute you’ve finished you want to rewatch to spot the clues. Time Lapse is currently doing the rounds of film festivals, and winning awards at them. It may not be at your local cinema yet, but keep looking and asking for it.

Three friends (Danielle Panabaker, George Finn, Matt O'Leary), living in and managing an apartment complex, stumble upon a strange machine in a mysterious neighbor’s home. It’s pointed at their large living room window, and they realize that, somehow, it takes photos 24 hours into the future exactly at 8pm. Posted around the machine’s room are hundreds of photos of them. Initially, the machine provides a prosperous opportunity as they send messages, to their 24 hour earlier selves, on horse race winners. However, things turn dark and sinister quickly when they start to believe that they need to perfectly recreate the scene in the photograph the following day or face dangerous consequences and possibly death.

It’s one of those films that you wish would go on forever. With each new photograph revealed, you’re thinking—just like the characters—what’s the story behind the photo? What’s going to happen in 24 hours to make it come true?

First time director, King, and co-writer Cooper have produced a well-imagined film and worked wonders with a small set and budget. Keep an eye on these two. Something tells me we will be seeing big things from them in the future. Do not miss this film when it comes to your local theatre. It’s a science fiction classic gem.

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Edge of Tomorrow ✪✪✪✪½

Watch. Enjoy. Repeat.

Opens in Australia:               5^TH June 2014

USA: 6^th June 2014                UK: 30^thMay 2014

Other Countries:                   Release Information

Science Fiction films have been a real disappointment over the past few years. The trailers look so good, and we can’t wait, and then we sit there in the cinema really excited, thinking this is going to be fun, oh please take me where I haven’t been before. Repeatedly the film is a big fail, clichéd, and dull, even when they star A-listers like Johnny Depp, Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, and Matt Damon.

Then along comes Tom Cruise’s Edge of Tomorrow, and we’re not expecting much. The poster is schlock; it’s Tom Cruise (although I don’t dislike him, like everyone else seems to); Emily Blunt as a kick-ass soldier (what?), and it dives into the genre of “time slip” that is difficult to make work. It shouldn’t be amazingly good. But it is.

Edge of Tomorrow is one of the best sci-fi films in the past few years, and a lot of it has to do with a snappy script, thoughtful casting, and director Doug Liman’s (The Bourne Ultimatum) ability to balance character development, humor, and action.

Earth is losing the war against an alien invasion and Cage (Tom Cruise), a cowardly officer, finds himself at the front-line in a full-metal fighting suit that he doesn’t know how to use. Within minutes he dies on the beach battlefield and finds himself reset, back to the beginning of the day. Several more deaths, and he comes into contact with Rita (Emily Blunt), a tough as nails heroine with the nickname 'Heavy Metal Bitch.' She tells him, “Come back and find me, when you wake up.” That he does, and learns why he is continually repeating the day, and how he is the only one who can win the war for humanity.

It’s big. It’s daring. It’s a popcorn film that pays out with buckets of humor, excitement, and a clever angle on the well-tread time slip trope. Tom Cruise plays his role with wit and depth, and cross-cast Emily Blunt is his perfect match. Even though the story is about repeating a day, it doesn’t become, well… repetitive. The film is based on Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s 2004 book, All You Need Is Kill. It’s success proves that all you need for an enjoyable film is a good script, good casting, and good direction. Can Hollywood please take notice, and try just repeating this formula.

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Hunger Games: Catching Fire ★★★ ½

Hunger Games: Catching fire feeds the multitude

Opens in Australia: 21st November, 2013
UK: 21^stNovember 2013 
USA: 22^ndNovember 2013

Other Countries: Release Information

   Okay everybody you can stop salivating and wishing the time away. Hunger Games: Catching Fire has arrived with a bang.  It topped the box office in Australia, ahead of its release in the USA with a staggering 65% increase from the first film’s result and the second biggest opening day for 2013 behind Iron Man 3.

Fans of Suzanne Collin’s dystopian series will not be disappointed. It follows the book closely, covering the politics and the lives of the love triangle of Katniss, Peeta and Gale. Directed by Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend, Constantine, Water for Elephants), reviewers and audiences are claiming it is better than the first film. The last book of the trilogy has been split into two films and will also be directed by Lawrence.

After winning the 74^th Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) return to District 12 as victors.  Part of their job is to participate in the propaganda surrounding the Hunger Games, embarking on tours of the other Districts (think an Olympics homecoming but with a dour crowd).  Peeta and Katniss, who used the ruse of “being in love” to avoid being killed at the games, must continue to perpetrate the lie. On a visit to District 11, (young Rue’s district who was Katniss’ murdered friend in the first games) Katniss and Peter make the mistake of going off script and speaking from the heart. This incites the crowd to demonstrate their “hope” by whistling the notes Katniss used to contact Rue in the games, along with a three finger salute. As they travel through the districts the unrest continues, with the salute and the whistle its trademark.

With Katniss as its figurehead, President Snow (Donald Sutherland) views this demonstration of solidarity and hope as a threat to the supremacy of Pan Am. He devises a plan with the new gamesmaker Plutarch Heavensbee (Philip Seymour Hoffman) to create a special games for the Quarter Quell (75 years of Hunger Games). The tributes will be chosen from the victors this time. Just when it seems Katniss will finally have a chance to be with Gale(Liam Hemsworth), she and other angry victors must return to an even more dangerous arena.

Stanley Tucci is a knockout as commentator Caesar Flickerman.  Elizabeth Banks is again fabulous as Effie Trinkett.  All the team are still there: Wood Harrelson as Haymitch, Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, Toby Jones as Claudius Templesmith along with new tributes.

It’s a dark drama, and even though an enjoyable watch, the first half of the film covering the politics does drag until the games begin. When they do, they pack a wallop with real edge of your seat thrills (if you call watching young people kill innocent others thrilling). Just like the first, it ends with the promise of the next film. These films are box office gold. The producers will certainly not be going hungry.

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"Marvel's" Thor The Dark World ★★★★

THE GODS ARE SMILING AND SO IS THE AUDIENCE

Opens in Australia: 31st October
USA: 8th November  UK: 30th October

Other Countries: Release Information

     Let’s face it, Thor (thanks to Chris Hemsworth) is the best looking hero of the Marvel film franchises, and the studio could just rest on that.  We girls would be happy.  However, not content to rest on a pretty face, they’ve taken the time to bring in the right crew to work on number two, Thor The Dark World. 
Christopher Yost (screenplay) has been head writer on many “Marvel” animations and contributed to the original Thor. Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely (screenplay) together wrote Captain America: The First Avenger and have just completed Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and have also penned all three of The Narnia Chronicles.  Then you have Emmy®-winning director, Alan Taylor, who has worked on highly acclaimed shows like Sopranos, West Wing, Six Feet Under, Mad Men and, most recently, Game of Thrones.

Together, they’ve pulled off a worthy sequel, something very difficult to do in a franchise which has created such high expectations; achieving this by ensuring all the key ingredients from the origin story-humor, action, and realism while progressing the story line and character development.

We follow on from The Avengers’ “New York” conclusion where Thor (Chris Hemsworth) has returned to Asgard and his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins), with Loki (Tom Hiddleston) in tow, to imprison his adopted brother for his misbehavior on Earth.  But, dealing with his wayward son is the least of Odin’s problems. An alignment of the Nine Realms (occurring once every 5,000 years) is imminent, and it will open a portal between the worlds-Earth being one of them. 

Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is attempting to forget Thor, whom she hasn’t seen for two years. While investigating an anomaly, created by the impending alignment, she is dragged into the dark world where she inadvertently reignites a war, waged thousands of years previously, between one of Asgard’s greatest adversaries, Malekith.

As leader of the dark elves, Malekith was defeated by Odin’s Father, but he returns to take advantage of the realm’s alignment to take over Asgard and cause havoc throughout the universe.  Thor must create unlikely alliances and defy his father to defeat Malekith and restore peace to the Realms and, of course, once again save Earth.

The worlds are beautifully imagined and created, heightening the realism.  The director, Taylor, and filmmakers created this authenticity while filming scenes as much as possible on location and creating enormous, realistic sets; some taking months at a time to build.  Natalie Portman felt the scale of the sets harkened back to a different filmmaking era and commented, “It’s really like the old days of cinema. You walk on to the set and you think ‘Wow, we’re making a movie’.”

True to previous “Marvel” films, the story line is again interwoven between one franchise and another, following on from The Avengers and leaving the door open for the next. There are guest cameos from the first film's characters and other Marvel characters, including an extremely amusing spot from Dr Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgård)—remember he the only one who understood the Tesseract weapon in The Avengers? Of course, fans of Loki will not be disappointed with his role.  He may not be quite as princely and beautiful as Thor (pretty close, though), but he delivers all the best lines. 

It’s an extremely entertaining blockbuster movie which serves, also, to whet the appetite for the next installment, Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  If the “notorious” Marvel credits scene inserts (two: one in the middle and one at the very end, so make sure you stay) are anything to go by, there are many more films to come. The Gods and the fans will be pleased.

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Gravity ★★★★★

A perfect space odyssey

Opens in Australia: 3rd October

USA: 4th October  UK: 10th October
Other Countries: Release Information

Gravity is surprising, no matter which way you turn. And there is a lot of turning and spinning, so be prepared if you suffer motion sickness. There is also a great deal of white knuckle, breath holding moments, too.

You could be forgiven for thinking a dramatic space film with Sandra Bullock as the lead wouldn’t work. The staging is so realistic you could, also, be forgiven for thinking it was filmed entirely in space. It was actually filmed entirely at Shepperton Studios in London, England against animated screens. You would also not expect that ninety minutes of slow movement, fifteen minutes of dialogue in the opening followed by mostly silence and monologue, would be so enthralling.

But director Alfonso Cuarón has delivered a film that will grab you by the throat from the beautiful opening scenes, and it will not release you until the end credits. Even then, you will find yourself reliving the moments later because it felt so real.

Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock), a medical genius is on her first shuttle mission and effecting repairs on a routine spacewalk. Matt Kowalsky (George Clooney) is on his last mission and, in the magnificent opening sequence, casually zips around her admiring his final view from space. When disaster strikes and their shuttle is destroyed through a collision with hurtling detritus, Dr. Stone must find a way back to earth while her air runs low and she finds herself in an environment for which she is ill prepared.

By all accounts Gravity was a frustrating film for Cuarón to create and he has said he will never venture into space again. Each sequence needed to be digitally created; a two year process before filming began. Most of the technology invented for the film constantly failed up until the first day of filming. Cuarón even kept a diary and talks of fifteen days where they barely achieved anything. The diary was his record for later analysis after what he believed would be his inevitable dismissal when the project fell apart. After the conclusion of principal filming, it was still another year and a half of post-production.

Even the star, Sandra Bullock, described the time she spent in a nine foot cube, created for her shots, as “lonely” and “isolating.” It was so difficult to get in and out of that she chose to remain inside between takes, alone, many times in full astronaut suit.

Gravity has been universally praised by critics, deservedly. We’ve never seen anything like it on the big screen. And since Cuarón has explained that it took him four and a half years to complete, we probably won’t again. But the effort was worth it. It is a haunting, thrilling masterpiece that should be enjoyed on the big screen. We saw it in IMAX in 3D and it is worth the extra dollars to experience the full effect of this extraordinary film.

Here is a great interview with Alfonso Cuarón on GRAVITY

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World War Z ★★★★

Zombies Rule Okay!

Opens in Australia: 20th June
Other Countries: Release Information

          Zombies are the new black. You know they’ve entered popular culture when a respected actor like Brad Pitt stars in and produces a Zombie film via his ‘Plan B’ production company. “Five years ago, I knew nothing about zombies,” says Pitt. “Now, I consider myself an expert.”

Once residing in the B-grade domain, where no mainstream author or filmmaker would dare to go less they lose their take-me-seriously badge, Zombies have become a big draw in entertainment. This year alone, we have Warm Bodies (a zombie love story), The World’s End’ (a comedy coming soon), the third season of the very gory ‘The Walking Dead’ (the highest rated show on cable television), and now the thriller drama ‘World War Z’.

           The film began as a post-apocalyptic horror novel by Max Brooks entitled ‘World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War’ using a multi-person, testimonial style. Director, Marc Forster comments, “The novel’s approach did not lend itself to a motion picture screenplay. We did try to follow the narrative of the book but found, having gone through the process, the dramatic tension was significantly diminished, at least in cinematic terms.”

       And there is tension aplenty, along with zombies who don’t shuffle aimlessly; these guys run faster than a cheetah. In fact the quip, “You don’t have to outrun a lion to survive, just the other guy” played through my mind as each victim was pursued.

           From almost the opening scenes in Philadelphia, we are hurled into the action with Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt), an ex-UN worker who in his past worked in volatile, dangerous political situations. He’s since given up the peril to be with his family, Karin (Mireille Enos) and their two daughters.

          When a rapidly spreading, zombie virus takes over the world, Gerry is the guy called to escort an expert scientist into zombie territory to track down ‘Patient Zero’. First though the UN must rescue him and his family from the infected city of Philadelphia; no mean feat when there are thousands of zombies everywhere zombifying healthy people in seconds with one bite.

       Gerry must then leave his family behind at the UN Headquarters, now a ship off the coast of the US, and travel around the world following clues in the hope of finding an antidote. 

          There are certainly some edge of the seat, gut-churning moments as Gerry and his military escort experience some back-against-the-wall moments.

        The action is extreme and realistic and, surprisingly, was filmed in Glasgow which doubled for Philadelphia—the cities share similar architecture, some of which was augmented during post-production. Veteran second unit director Simon Crane who orchestrated much of the ‘World War Z’ mayhem, shares, “We crashed over 150 different cars. We crashed the garbage truck and slammed Brad’s Volvo into an ambulance and various other things. It was big scale. At least 80% of the vehicles were written off. We shut down blocks and blocks of Glasgow for controlled car crashes outside the main buildings.”

         The other stars of the film, the zombies, were as real-life as the un-dead get. Creating crowd scenes which included zombies called for its own logistical feat, says producer Ian Bryce, “If you have 500 extras that need to look a certain way, that’s an awful lot of people required to get them ready. We were shooting one day with the full extra count and I remember coming on to the set and you literally couldn’t move because of the size of the crew that was there to get everyone ready. And then a couple hours later we sent the zombies away for a little break as we were going to do something else just with Brad and a few other people and it was like the set became barren. It was hilarious.”

         ‘World War Z’ is not just a film for the zombie or horror fans, its solid script and performances will please most thriller and action fans. Brad Pitt, despite his huge star-persona, rarely appears in blockbuster films, tending to prefer dramatic indie roles worthy of his acting talents. Thanks to his solid portrayal of an ordinary man with, literally, the world on his shoulders ‘World War Z’ is lifted a notch above the average.

       It’s Brad Pitt versus the zombies and the winner this time is the cinema-goer.

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Star Trek Into Darkness ★★★★

BOLDLY GOING WHERE IT’S GONE BEFORE

Opens in Australia: 9^th May 2013; USA 15^th May; UK 9^th May

Other Countries: Release Information  

 

In forty-seven years since the launch of the original three-season series, ‘Star Trek’ has sparked five television series including an animation, eleven motion pictures and a fan base that continues to grow.  

 I grew up a trekkie. As a child of the sixties it was one of my favorite  shows. Then, oh joy, oh bliss, came ‘Star Trek Next Generation’ and all the fabulous follow-on series after and then the series of eighties and nineties movies.  In my previous life the company I owned even sponsored the eleven p.m. Thursday night series of ‘Star Trek Voyager.’  It was pretty cheap to run ads at that time of night.  So, this reboot was always on my must see list. 

The 2009 J.J. Abrams first ‘Star Trek’ reboot film was a hoot and despite my concerns after Abram’s ‘Lost’ series finale letdown, he managed to deliver a great start to the new series.  Also, too, was the fun of watching the new younger versions step into their iconic sixties characters. That guy who plays Doc really looks like the original doesn’t he?  So, I was bouncing in my seat for ‘Into Darkness’. 

In this voyage we are immediately thrown into a mission going wrong when, in order to save Spock, the crew must expose their existence to the primitive inhabitants of a planet; a no, no on the prime directive.  This sets up the exploration of the complex friendship between Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and his First Officer Spock (Zachary Quinto).

Subsequently, Kirk is relieved of his duty and demoted to first officer on another ship and Spock (Zachary Quinto) is also re-assigned.  However, during a Star Fleet headquarters meeting they are attacked by a new super nemesis, mysterious intergalactic terrorist John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch).  Kirk is re-commissioned by Star Fleet Admiral (Peter Weller) to gather his original crew to take off in pursuit of the terrorist who has wreaked havoc and killed some of the nearest and dearest of Star Fleet.  The truth they discover when they find Harrison is not what they are expecting.

Returning to The Enterprise is the crew that brought it so viscerally to life in the original, Karl Urban as Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy, Simon Pegg as Chief Engineer “Scotty” Scott, Zoe Saldana as Communications Officer Uhura, John Cho as Helmsman Hikaru Sulu, Anton Yelchin as Pavel Chekov and Bruce Greenwood as Admiral Christopher Pike.

Whilst it is an enjoyable blockbuster, it didn’t beam me up as I’d hoped.  Some of it felt like a bunch of scenes we have seen before mashed together; one I think taken from the 1982 ‘Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan’ but with a reversal of characters.

Gene Rodenberry’s (the original creator of Star Trek) vision of the future was one of optimism and hope.  He created Star Trek to explore charged political topics such as racism, greed, and violence and as an exemplar of how much is achieved when we work together for the betterment of all and not just expansion of power. He had an unusual optimism of the future considering the cold-war, nuclear fearful era in which he lived.

I think it is the lack of optimism where the problem lies for me in ‘Into Darkness’.  Whilst there is much to enjoy here and most Trekkies and sci-fi buffs will revel in it, for me it is missing that special ingredient.  However, regardless it’s still a must see because let’s face it any Star Trek is better than no Star Trek. 

 Are you a trekkie and what do you think of the reboot franchise?

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MARVEL'S IRON MAN 3 ★★★★½

IRON-CLAD FUN

Australia: 24th April 2013; USA 5th May UK 25th April
Other Countries:  Release Information

“Nothings been the same since New York,” laments Tony Stark (aka Iron Man) referencing the thrilling final fight sequence in 2012 Marvel’s THE AVENGERS.  Iron Man fans could say the same thing.  There have been so few great entertainment movies since then we have become accustomed to settling for ‘not bad’ films as good.

Now with IRON MAN 3 we remember why going to the cinema is worth the effort and the expense.  A year after we thrilled to the adrenaline packed and oh-so-clever super hero love fest that was THE AVENGERS, finally IRON MAN 3 day has arrived and nobody should walk away disappointed. 

Sure you can point out plot-holes and yes, there are a couple of draggy bits but it is still 130 minutes of pure fun for anyone over the age of ten.  It’s got the mix of soul-searching and action just right—not an easy thing to do when you think of DARK KNIGHT RISES’ awkward pace.  The baddies are scary-unstoppable à la the original TERMINATOR and the conclusion has a satisfying emotional finale akin to ALIEN.

This one is a safe bet for the studios after the critically acclaimed “THE AVENGERS” set the all-time domestic three-day weekend box-office record at $207.4 million. The film went on to gross over $1.5 billion worldwide becoming Disney’s highest-grossing global and domestic release of all time.

“The exciting thing about IRON MAN 3 is not only is it the culmination of the first two films but it’s also a follow-up to ‘Marvel’s The Avengers,’” says producer Kevin Feige. “It’s one of the first situations where you have a movie that is the sequel to two different films.”

“Early on in the film you see Tony is wearing the Mark 42 and the last time we saw him he was in the Mark 7 and we quickly learn that Tony has been very busy between the time of THE AVENGERS and IRON MAN 3.”

The terrific fun begins from the opening scenes where we learn all is not well in the Stark world.  In 1999 during Tony’s partying days the mistake he makes in ignoring two brilliant scientists Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) and Maya Hansen (Rebecca Hall) have come back to haunt him, or should we say taunt him, in a dangerous way.

Tony also suffers from super-hero post-traumatic stress and Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow) who is doing a darn fine job of running Stark Enterprises and maintaining the devotion of the world’s most popular hero is no longer laughing at his boyish humor.

Whilst Tony is off playing with his suits, the Government assures citizens James Rhodes aka “War Machine” (Don Cheadle) wearing a red, white and blue Iron Man suit offers the country protection without the character flaws.

Enter terrorist Mandarin (Ben Kingsley).  He likes blowing up things and creating chaos.  As he says in his supremely brilliant evil-overlord voice, “You will ‘neverrr’ see me coming” and, believe me, you won’t.

Taking terror to the highest degree, even the President’s plane is attacked creating a spectacular air rescue which involved, in its filming, sixty-two airplane loads and over 500 hidden parachute jumps by the Red Bull Skydiving Team.  After challenging the Mandarin our hero finds his world and all his toys destroyed including his suit.  He crash lands in a backwater town where he hunkers down to locate and identity the Mandarin.

One nuance of Kingsley’s Mandarin that remained a mystery until he arrived on set was the voice of the character. Kingsley came up with the voice in the same way he approaches all of his roles; letting things manifest organically. “The voice just came out of me one day when I was working.  I was upset and just rampaging around my hotel room,” explains Kingsley. “The front desk called my room because of the noise and I just came out with a few Mandarin expletives in response and they stuck.”

The rest of the film incorporates the twists and turns and the trademark off-beat humor franchise fans have come to love. There is a load of new technology and suits and some laugh-out-loud scenes with smart-ass kid Harley (twelve-year-old Ty Simpkins).

Next off the ramp in the Marvel franchises is THOR: DARK WORLD releasing October/November.  Ever since the first IRON MAN nothing has ever been the same on the big screen.  And we thank our lucky ‘Starks’ for that.  These Marvel films are entertainment that always lives up to the hype.

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THE HOST (fans of this genre ★★★★ Non-Fans ★★)

THE MIND GAMES

Australia: 28th March 2013; USA 29th March UK 29th MarchOther Countries:  Release Information 

Stephenie Meyer certainly loves romantic conflict. The author of the best-selling ‘Twilight Saga’ books has done for young female readers and their mothers what Harry Potter did for nine-year olds.  It brought them to read—no mean feat in this technology age where interacting with fantasy worlds with your thumbs is considered far more exciting than with words and imagination.

Whilst reviewers love to critique the quality of the 'Twilight' books and the film adaptations, her fans agree to disagree and continue to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on her products.

So, it was always a given that her other speculative fiction work, ‘The Host’ would become a film to fill the hole created with the conclusion of the ‘Twilight Saga’.

‘The Host’, directed and adapted by Andrew Niccol, along with a highly respected production team and multi-awarded cast including William Hurt, Frances Fisher, Diane Kruger in supporting roles for the young, relatively unknown leads, is not a film for the discerning film-goer who desires a deep, well-fashioned script with sub-plots that will leave them marvelling at the mastery of the film-makers. 

However, it isn’t made for us cinephiles.  It is for the young—and not so young, if my fellow soccer-mom friends are anything to go by—fans of the novel and this fantasy romance sub-genre.  There are millions of these consumers out there and they are prepared to pay to read these books and watch the films and we shouldn’t dissuade them.   They make the publishing and film industry go round.

Stephenie Meyer said she came upon the idea for the 2008 ‘The Host’ (which spent 26 weeks at No. 1 on The New York Times bestseller list and 36 weeks on the Los Angeles Times bestseller list) whilst driving through the desert between Phoenix and Salt Lake City.   “I came on the idea of two personalities in one body. They are both in love with different people, which creates a great deal of conflict. I like messy relationships. They’re fun to work through.”

In this story, our heroine Melanie (Saoirse Ronan) is thrown into conflict when Earth is invaded by an alien race. The invaders do not arrive with laser guns and drones but instead gently place their souls inside their hosts, taking over their bodies.  They are ‘peaceful’ beings and create harmony and balance in the assumed human race.  For the record, because all aliens take over our planet because we “kill each other”, I would like to state I am not one of the violent ones, so surely I should be allowed to keep my body.

When Melanie, one of the last remaining humans, is captured and receives the soul of Wanderer (Wanda), she refuses to relinquish her body to the invader.  So begins a tussle of spirit (and voiceover).  Before her capture Melanie was on the run with her little brother Jamie (Chandler Canterbury) and another survivor Jared Howe (Max Irons).  Jared and Melanie become lovers and it is this love, and her promise to Jamie that she will return to him, that imbues her with the strength to fight Wanda’s control. 

Wanda, though, finds that she cannot inhabit Melanie’s body and not be moved by her strong emotions and memories.  This desire causes them to set out on a dangerous journey to reunite with Melanie’s loved ones. What they find will not be the joyful reunion either imagined.

If you are not a fan of YA books and the fantasy genre, then this film is not for you.   However, there are a lot more like this on the way with three more ‘’Hunger Games’ adaptations, ‘Warm Bodies’, ‘Divergent’, and ‘Pure’ to name a few.  So get used to the idea of star-crossed supernatural romances; there is an invasion coming to a box-office near you and it will be hard to avoid.

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Iron Man 3 Teaser Trailer Released

If this doesn’t have you foaming at the mouth, I don’t know what will…

          the first full length teaser trailer of Iron Man 3

 

 

 

Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy's hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Starring Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale with Jon Favreau and Ben Kingsley, “Iron Man 3” is directed by Shane Black from a screenplay by Drew Pearce and Shane Black and is based on Marvel’s iconic Super Hero Iron Man, who first appeared on the pages of “Tales of Suspense” (#39) in 1963 and had his solo comic book debut with “The Invincible Iron Man” (#1) in May of 1968.
 

 

“Iron Man 3” is presented by Marvel Studios in association with Paramount Pictures and DMG Entertainment. Marvel Studios’ President Kevin Feige is producing and Jon Favreau, Louis D'Esposito, Stephen Broussard, Victoria Alonso, Alan Fine, Charles Newirth, Stan Lee and Dan Mintz are executive producers. The film releases April 25, 2013, and is distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

 

Marvel’s Iron Man 3 – Only at the Movies APRIL 25, 2013

Classification: CTC

 

 

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Looper ★ ★ ★ ★

TIME TRAVEL FOR THE THINKING-MAN

Australia: 27th October, 2012 USA: 28th September, 2012; UK: 28th October 2012
Other Countries: Release Dates

 

      

Time travel is a fascinating subject.  The "what ifs" play with your mind, like going back to alter your future and the subsequent consequences. The most exciting ideas they pose are the difficult moral questions. If you had the chance to kill Hitler as a child, would you? Could you stare into the eyes of an innocent child and pull the gun trigger?

Then there’s the question of knowing your own timeline.  How would you live your life if you knew you had thirty years to live; no more, no less? Your choices at say twenty-five may look rather foolish when you’re fifty-five. 

  ‘Looper’, a very original film from Director and screenwriter Rian Johnson poses these very questions in an intelligent and thought-provoking way.  When you read the synopsis for Looper it sounds incredibly confusing but in reality it’s a simple idea.  Time travel in 2074 is invented and outlawed but still used by the mob to remove targets whose bodies are difficult to hide. So they send back their victims thirty years to a designated spot at an exact time, hands tied and their heads covered in a sack.  Waiting for them is a Looper, like Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), to kill them instantly with a blunderbuss and then dispose of their body. 

 

Loopers are paid very well for their services and run by an underworld boss, Abe (Jeff Daniels).  The only downside of a Looper’s life is that eventually the mob will ‘close the loop’ on them.  They will send back the Looper’s self from the future to he killed by his thirty-year younger version, who will be paid handsomely, after which he retires to live the rest of his thirty years knowing one day his time will come. 

If you dare ‘let your loop run’, which means letting your older self get away, then you are in a whole load of trouble.  This is demonstrated in a particularly nasty sequence when a fellow Looper Seth (Paul Dano) is tortured, with his older self’s body instantly reflecting the impact of his younger self’s punishment.  Think healed limb severing and you have the picture.

When Joe’s older self (Bruce Willis) escapes execution by his younger self, we discover he is on a mission.  He must find the 2044 child version of a powerful gangster nicknamed ‘The Rainman’ in order to save the future, or at least his future.   This search brings younger Joe into contact with Sarah (Emily Blunt) living on a peaceful farm with her son Cid.  It seems all roads will lead to this farm and it is here that the future will be determined.

A couple of things will strike you in this film: Joseph Gordon Levitt, who plays the younger version of Bruce Willis’s Joe, look very alike, despite being very different.  In fact, it’s uncanny and you will keep marvelling at Gordon-Levitt’s Willis-like mannerisms.  Secondly the crazy flying car chases that you normally find in these sci-fi films are not the centrepiece of the story. 

   “I had written the younger part for Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who, besides being my favorite actor, is also a good friend,” says Johnson.  “When the possibility of Bruce Willis to play the older Joe presented itself, I got so excited because Bruce is such a good actor and was so right for the part in so many ways.  It raised a problem, though, because they really look nothing like each other.  We had to find a way to bridge the gap, and the solution was two-fold.” 

“The first thing was makeup,” Johnson continues.  “Joseph Gordon-Levitt went through nearly three hours of makeup and prosthetics every single morning to adjust his nose, his upper lip and his lower lip.  There was no way we were going to make him look like a young Bruce Willis, but we decided we’d pick a couple of key features and alter them just enough to give the audience something to grab onto so they could decide to go with it.”

“The other part – 90 percent of it – is Joe’s performance,” says Johnson.  “It’s incredible to watch – he doesn’t imitate Bruce, he creates a character that feels like a younger Bruce.  He’s doing a very specific voice and he took on a lot of Bruce’s mannerisms.  Its great acting, and a pretty phenomenal thing to see come to life.”

‘Looper’ may not appeal to those who love their sci-fi action-packed.  There are thinking-man moments which require some patience.  But your patience will be rewarded with this haunting piece of cinema and storytelling which is certainly a cut above anything we’ve seen in recent time-line. 

 

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